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The Ultimate Guide to Rodent Control
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Ants may seem tireless, but ants do sleep. I’m a licensed technician in Alexandria since 2015, and I’ve studied ant behavior inside homes and yards. Ants live in organized colonies where rest and work are carefully timed.
Over the years, I’ve seen all sorts of sleep habits in ant colonies.
Insects need rest to stay sharp. According to a PubMed study, sleep in insects is a state of reduced responsiveness. Sleeping ants hold very still and show a much lower level of brain activity.
Using brain activity recorders, researchers monitored brain activity in soldier ants. They saw a decline in brain wave fluctuations during deep sleep. In contrast, during wakeful periods, ants display a higher level of brain activity. This deep sleep phase features mandible and antennae activity and rapid antennal twitches akin to rapid eye movement. Some tests even saw ants slumber for eight minutes when undisturbed.
Ants generally rely on polyphasic sleep. A journal of insect study of fire ant sleep cycle found that the average worker ant takes approximately 250 one-minute naps each day, each lasting just over a minute. These short power naps add up to about 4 hours and 48 minutes of sleep per 24-hour period, or 288 minutes of sleep per day.
In contrast, queen ants enjoy longer and deeper rest, napping around 90 times a day, each about 6 minutes, for an average of nine hours a day. This polyphasic approach keeps tasks staffed throughout the colony while 80 percent of workers stay active.
Many species of ants have an internal clock for a 24-hour period. Some show a wake-sleep cycle every 12 hours when isolated. Research conducted in PLOS One shows Camponotus rufipes foragers forage for food mainly at night, while nurse ants skip their solo sleep pattern to tend brood. Ants also communicate with pheromones to sync rest shifts in irregular intervals, allowing ants the ability to take turns resting.
However, in a full colony, social cues often override individual sleep schedules. Isolated ants stick to their cycle, but within the colony, workers rest in staggered shifts so work never stops.
Let’s look at some common ant species in our area.
Carpenter ants are mainly nocturnal foragers. They enter a deep resting phase in wood galleries during the day. When night falls, they come out to forage for water and sugar. Spot their trails around dusk and learn more in our Short Guide To Carpenter Ants.
Pavement ants forage at twilight and through the night, nesting in cracks under pavement. Their rest period is mostly under stones and soil, where they take short naps throughout the day. The majority of ant workers roam in cool evenings, while the rest slumber underground.
Odorous house ants are partly diurnal, foraging in kitchens in daylight. By late night they return to nest cavities, entering restful sleep until morning. For tips on blocking these invaders, see How to Prevent Ants in Virginia.
Within a colony, ants may take shifts resting while others patrol.
Understanding ants’ sleep helps you time treatments. Since ants never all sleep, there’s always someone awake to dodge traps. To keep ants out, bait them when they patrol. You’ll find trails both within the walls of homes and outside the nest, so target both areas.
Ants hibernate in winter, entering a state to wait out the winter. They reduce their urge to forage, so baiting then may fail. For best results, tackle colonies in spring and summer.
Our approach uses non-repellent insecticides that carry control agents deep into colonies. All products we use are EPA approved and passed by our internal research team. We’ve removed nine harsh chemicals, choosing options we would feel comfortable using in our own homes. Our licensed technicians maintain your barrier year-round so you can rest easier.
Ready to stop ants from taking over? Call 703-683-2000 or email info@bettertermite.com for an estimate. Our Registered technicians answer your questions and schedule visits fast.
When you ask “long do ants sleep”, know that a worker logs about 4 hours and 48 minutes per 24-hour period in dozens of short bouts.
Squishing an ant releases alarm pheromones—ants communicate this signal to call more workers, making an infestation worse.
Nocturnal ants leave the nest to forage for food, scout new areas, or guard entrances. Fire ant and carpenter ants are most active after dusk.
Sleeping ants hold very still, with antenna folded and mandibles relaxed. They don’t react to light touch, showing a higher arousal threshold.
Ants hibernate or enter hibernation (diapause) to wait out the winter. They enter a state of low activity deep inside nests until spring.
Research conducted in 2009 showed the average worker ant takes approximately 250 naps per 24-hour day, each lasting just over a minute.
If you disturb a resting ant, it may sleep longer later. Insects show sleep rebound like humans to catch up on missed rest.
Call 703-683-2000 or email info@bettertermite.com with questions or for an estimate today!
With five years of hands-on experience in the pest control industry, George Schulz is a registered technician with the Virginia Pest Management Association and a proud third-generation professional in a family business that’s been protecting homes for over 57 years. He manages and trains a team of service pros while also leading internal research efforts—recently spearheading a deep-dive review of thousands of documents on pest control materials to hand-pick the most kid and pet friendly, most effective solutions tailored specifically for homes in the DC metro area. Read his bio.
