Web Exclusive: Experts weigh in on ant management lessons learned

Photo courtesy of, and copyrighted by, Gene White, pmimages@earthlink.net

For our April 2017 issue, we posed the following question to our regular contributors: What’s the best ant management lesson you’ve learned? For insights from Paul Hardy, Frank Meek and Mark “Shep” Sheperdigian, please turn to p. 14 of the issue.

But three more of our experts also responded, as follows:

• Dr. Doup Mampe: Make sure you have a proper ID. Different ants respond to different baits and have different trailing habits. I’ve watched pest management professionals treat inside when the ants are trailing from outdoors.
• Kurt Scherzinger: Never underestimate the odorous house ant (Tapinoma sessile). Many homeowners think it is just a simple little ant, but it can be one of the most challenging ant species to attack if you go about it the incorrect way.
• Dr. Stephen Vantassel: Frequently, ants are more of a problem in the client’s mind than in reality.

Now, it’s your turn: What was your best ant management lesson? Sound off below or email pmpeditor@northcoastmedia.net.