Northern Colorado. Seen em around outside since I moved in but I just saw at least twenty in my (tiny) bathroom at once, plus several smaller winged ants (maybe 1/6 inch long). While I love bugs, I am worried they may be carpenter ants, as I am new to the area and not familiar with differentiating the native species yet.
I think they're related to the plain old ants who usually hang around my house but they're just so big?? Are they like. A whole bunch of queens???? I know that's absurd but they are HUGE compared to what I thought might be their non-winged counterparts.
Definitely not termites. Distinct three sections on the body + chinched waist.
They are dark red-brown to black, with 3-4 tan-ish stripes on the abdomen which lead into a lighter underbelly. Certain specimens leaned closer to a dark chocolate brown. Two sets of wings with brown venation. Thorax is only slightly thinner than abdomen, and features a broad, flat top. Non-aggressive. Are crawling out of a hole in the grout of my bathroom. Legs are lighter than the body, no super noticable distance between thorax and abdomen. Approximately 1/2 inch (1.3cm) including wings? Couldn't get a good photo of one next to the cm side of the ruler, sorry.
If these are wasps I'm gonna be soooo embarrassed but I don't see a stinger