The parent colony is often located in a tree, stump, or in stacked wood within 100 meters of the house. Wood and stumps buried in the yard when the house was constructed or numerous stumps and decorative wood pieces brought in to enhance the beauty of a yard or driveway may also be the source of a parent colony. The natural food for these ants consists of insects and other anthropods and sweet exudates from aphids and insects. They are also attracted to other sweet materials such as decaying fruits. Mated queens find a suitable place to live and chew off their wings, excavate a small home and begin laying eggs.
Mated queens lay eggs which become workers or queens.
Unmated queens or queens which have run out of sperm can produce only males. By the end of summer either workers have emerged or the larvae from late eggs become dormant. The dormant phase ends about mid-January, when the queen begins laying eggs again. The structure should be properly ventilated, especially in crawl spaces and attic areas. Moisture that accumulates in poorly ventilated areas contributes to the growth of wood-decay fungi and makes an ideal habitat for establishing a Carpenter Ant colony.