Thief ant Solenopsis molesta Yellow to dirty brown 1 to 1.5 mm Grease, meats, sweets, seed Cracks and crevices of cabinets and walls One of our smallest ants. Often lives in the nests of larger ants, stealing and feeding on the larvae of the hosts. Control The key to controlling most ant species is to locate their nest and apply an appropriate insecticide. Ants usually follow a definite path, marked by pheromones, from their nest to the food source and back. By observing and following this path, one may discover the nest site.
Most ants nest outside the house in the soil or adjacent to the soil under various objects.
The pharaoh ant is an exception that nearly always nests indoors. Carpenter ants and the odorous hose ant are also exceptions that readily nest indoors as well as outside. Carpenter ants hollow out dead and decaying wood to build a nest, or they may simply use an existing void in the building construction. Since they differ considerably from most house-infesting species in their biology and control, they are covered separately in MU publication G 7423, Carpenter Ants. If the nest is not found, spray windowsills, door thresholds, and other openings, baseboard, behind and under cabinets and appliances, and other surfaces.