Residents of the emirate of Abu Dhabi made thousands of calls to pest control services asking for help to rid their homes of ants.
Abu Dhabi Waste Management Centre (Tadweer) received more than 16,800 inquiries about the insects in Abu Dhabi city, Al Ain and Al Dhafra in the first six months of the year.
The number was up from almost 15,900 compared with the same period in 2019.
Al Ain had the highest amount, with more than 10,700 inquiries, up from more than 9,400 the previous year.
Residents of Abu Dhabi city generated the second largest number of complaints with more than 5,200 requests, with Al Dhafra residents issuing 859.
Both cities recorded a small decline in calls for help compared with the same period in 2019.
"Dealing with ant control requests forms part of our effort to increase and maintain both public cleanliness and environmental safety for the benefit of the community," said Mohammed Mahmoud Al Marzouqi, pest control projects director at Tadweer.
“We follow best international practice in our use of licensed pesticides, that are approved locally and internationally, and in our protocols for the proper control and disposal of these ants.”
He urged the public not to hire unlicensed or unauthorised companies to tackle the problem.
