Biting / Stinging Ant? - Cephalonomia New York, New York County, New York, USA
May 20, 2017
Size: 0.16 cm
1. Location = NYC apartment, 3rd floor
2. Size = 0.1 - 0.2 cm
3. They bite or sting, burning and painful, leaving quarter-sized welts that last for at least one week
4. When they die, they curl up into a little ball
5. Seem to come out in the Spring, last year and then again this year
6. Rarely seen, usually only one every few days, though sometimes several in one day if very vigilant
7. This year more often seen on kitchen counter, kitchen island, or bathroom counter, though also seen occasionally on/in toilet, bed, couch. Could be that they are just easier to see on the white counters. Last year saw 3-4 (most I ever saw together) in bedroom going under a baseboard.
8. Do not seem interested in fruit, crumbs, honey, butter, oil, sugar, peanut butter, frying pan grease. One time it appeared one was interested in the dried out milk and coffee on a dirty coffee mug left out. Never before or since seen on my coffee mug. Do not seem interested in my homemade peanut butter and honey borax baits or commercial liquid (Terro brand) ant baits.
9. Do not seem to travel in a "trail" pattern. They just seem to wander
10. Do not seem to travel in groups, just solo
11. No pets in home
12. Plants inside the apartment include giant philodendron, rubber plant,
bamboo, basil
13. Travel to Borneo every other year, but ants first noticed in 2016 and prior trip to Borneo was 2015
14. Hardwood floors in apartment (white oak) with poly-whey floor finish (6 years old)
15. Subflooring in building between floors is filled with sand/debris
16. They seem to like to crawl into my clothing and bite me in there, though they also bite me on my wrists. I have gotten bites on my chest wall (1-2 inches below the clavicle), breast, buttock, calf, thigh, beltline... They tend to bite me more than others in my family, though they do get my kids from time to time and very rarely they bite my husband, who does not get a significant reaction. I put my clothes in the dryer for 20 minutes before getting dressed, but they still manage to get me. Using permethrin body shampoo does not seem to keep them from biting me.
17. I don't think there is any particular time of day they come out. Maybe more in the afternoon?
Thank you fellow Iowans!
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    Contributed by aweinman on 30 May, 2017 - 10:12am Last updated 1 June, 2017 - 11:45pm |
