Termites look very similar to flying ants when they swarm. Both have two sets of wings; in termites all four wings are about the same size, while ants have a set of large wings and a set of smaller wings.

Ants species that are commonly confused with subterranean termite swarmers are carpenter ants and fire ants. Both of these ant species have winged reproductives that swarm in the early spring and randomly during the year.

The important thing to remember however is that subterranean termites only swarm in the spring in the US, and occasionally in the fall. Ground termite swarmers are very poor fliers and only use their wings to swarm. They will break them off soon after swarming to make crawling around easier.

You may encounter piles of broken wings, especially on windowsills, and near areas of sunlight such as doorways, etc. Winged ants do not break off their wings and are very strong fliers. Use the graphic above as a guide to determine what you have.