Were not the only ones who enjoy these warm summer days. As the mercury climbs, ants become one of our most common and persistent insect pests. Before you bring out the aerosol bug spray, however, there are some things you need to know about these industrious insects.

    To most people, all ants look pretty much alike. In reality, there are over a dozen different species that inhabit our coastal area. Fortunately, we do not have fire ants and their painful stings, which can be life-threatening to hypersensitive individuals. One of the most visible ants this time of the year are thatching ants.

    Thatching ants are most easily recognized by the large mounds they build from small sticks, grass stems, leaves and pine or fir needles. They may also nest in decayed logs. The majority of thatching ants found here are bi-colored red and black. A few are all black. They are medium to large ants, averaging 3/16 to 5/16 inches long with a notch or depression on the top of the thorax (the segment between the head and abdomen) when viewed from the side. Thatching ants can be confused with carpenter ants. A sure way to distinguish them from carpenter ants is to view them from the side and determine if the top of the thorax is smoothly rounded. In all carpenter ants it is rounded while in thatching ants there is a notch or dip.

    Under most circumstances, thatching ants should be considered beneficial since they are fierce predators of other insects. However, when they occur in lawns, rockeries, picnic areas and other areas of human habitation, they can become a severe annoyance. Thatching ants are often injurious to seedling trees or plants near their nests, and they have been known to damage the buds of apple, pear and other tree fruit in the spring. The landscape can be visually disrupted by the presence of their mounds. Physical contact with them is also displeasing since they can bite quite hard. They also usually spray the area they have bitten with formic acid, which produces a painful sensation, and the acid can result in blistering of the skin, if it is not washed.

    An interesting phenomenon demonstrated by thatching ants, as well as other ants, is the habit of herding and maintaining aphid colonies on trees, shrubs and weeds. This occasionally leads to an aphid problem because, while keeping aphids for their sweet honeydew, the ants protect the aphids from natural control organisms such as wasps and lady beetles.

    Thatching ants may be a threat if you find their mounds on your property. Frequently, though, they do not pose a serious problem and no control is recommended. If they are pests and you have to get rid of them, WSU currently recommends using insecticide products containing the active ingredient cyfluthrin or cypermethrin. The entire surface of the nest should be treated as well as the subterranean portion. One method is to penetrate the nest by digging deeply and stirring the nest contents with a shovel while pouring the recommended dosage of insecticide into the nest and surrounding area.

    WSU Master Gardeners will be conducting plant diagnostic clinics on Saturday, July 30, from 10 a.m to 2 p.m. at the Dennis Company in both Aberdeen and Montesano. This is a great opportunity to have your plant pest problems identified along with information on control options.

    Don Tapios book, More Than Just a Green Thumb, which covers a variety of gardening topics appropriate to our coastal area, is also available for $15 at the WSU Extension offices in Pacific and Grays Harbor counties. The Pacific County office is at 1216 W. Robert Bush Dr., South Bend, 360-875-9331.