ODOROUS HOUSE ANT (Tapinoma sessile)

Key Biology

• One flattened node, flat and hidden by abdomen
• Monomorphic
• 1/32 inch, very small ant
• Uneven thorax
• 12 segments on antenna
• No circle of hairs on tip of abdomen
• Brown to black
• Workers given off rotten coconut odor when crushed

Distribution

• Omnivorous, but prefer sweet foods and honeydew
• When crushed has a sweetish, nauseating, rotten pineapple or rancid butter scent
• Sometimes found under foundations, in crevices of walls, often a house pest
• Under bark of trees, in tree cavities, in bird and animal nests, on patios, porches, under logs, rocks and in mulch and debris
• On beaches, wooded environments
• In wall voids, near warm areas in homes like water heaters and pipes