This might make you antsy

Thursday, July 31, 2008 | 2 a.m.

So by now you’ve noticed all the ants. It’s summer and they’re thirsty, like the rest of us.

Ants are generally harmless and an essential part of the ecosystem, aerating soil and scavenging — in other words, helping plants grow and keeping us from being knee-deep in dead critters. Also, they’re famously industrious and star in many children’s stories. Woody Allen once voiced an animated ant, although ants have never had a nasty late-period career slump. But, now, there are some ants you probably don’t care for so much. These ants, for instance: The first two species, the odorous house ant and the Argentine ant, are almost identical and are happy to invade your home in search of sugar, grease and water. And then there are fire ants, which are the kind of ants that can not only ruin your picnic but also hold you down, beat you up and steal your wallet.

Odorous house ant

Latin name: Tapinoma sessile

Which might mean: To hang around, from “sessio”

Size: 2.4 to 3.25 mm in length

Color: Brown to dark brown

How to identify it: Unlike the nearly identical Argentine ant, the odorous house ant is comfortable in the midday desert heat. It lives in mounds. Also, you can squish it and see whether it smells like rotten coconuts.

Interesting fact: We mentioned the rotten coconut smell, right?

Argentine ant

Latin name: Linepithema humile

Which might mean: Lowly or humble, from “humilis.” It’s a small ant.

Size: 2 to 3 mm in length

Color: Brown to dark brown

How to identify it: By absence. If you don’t see your ants out in the middle of the day, they might be Argentine. They do not live in mounds.

Also, if they don’t smell like rotten coconuts when squished, they’re probably Argentine.

Interesting fact: Because the ants are an invasive species with a low level of genetic diversity, Argentine ants from different colonies cannot tell each other apart and do not attack. Hence, they form massive supercolonies and outbreed native species.

Red imported fire ant

Latin name: Solenopsis invicta

Which might mean: Unconquerable, undefeated, from “invictus”

Size: 2 to 6 mm in length

Color: Reddish brown

How to identify it: By its reddish color and tendency to swarm, to bite and to infest electrical equipment.

Interesting fact: When the first fire ant bites you, it releases a pheromone that attracts other ants and puts them in a biting mood. Oh, and a mature colony may contain up to 400,000 worker ants.