Many people use ant baits and traps to control the population of ants because it is a hassle-free and easy method to deal with their growing colonies.
Do Ant Traps Work on Tiny Ants? Ant traps work on tiny ants due to less population density, small colony size, high susceptibility, and quick transfer of food among members. In addition, they are easy to trap as they can enter through small openings of bait containers. It is easy to control their population as their mounds are not deeper and broader, using less space under the ground.
It is better to consider the species of ants, body size, and colony size before choosing ant traps because every trap does not work efficiently for every type of insect.
Will ant traps work on tiny ants?
Ant traps are effective at controlling ant populations, which can help get rid of the annoying insects by targeting their entire colonies or workforce.
Less population density
Tiny ants usually have small populations and less population density as their colonies consist of only a few hundred or thousand insects.
It is easy to get rid of their population density is small because a small colony dies earlier than a large colony. Tiny grease ants have low population density due to small colony size.
They do not dig deeper into the soil and remain close to the ground surface. Targeting a small population of insects by trapping them with baits or liquid solutions is easy.
You have to ensure that every forager gets food from the bait, which is only possible if you increase the amount of baiting material. However, you can target small colonies using a few containers.
So, these traps effectively work on these ants because all workers consume the toxic ingredients that lead to the quick removal of the insect population.
Easy to trap
It is easier to trap tiny ants than giant species because they can easily reach bait ingredients. They can easily sneak through tiny openings in the container and reach food.
Larger insects face problems entering the bait stations and avoid eating sugary foods when they cannot access them. Accordingly, these traps work better on tiny creatures.
I used Terro ant killer spray to kill the ghost ants that are only 1.2 to 1.5mm long, and one spray bottle of 16 ounces is sufficient to kill a large number of insects.
Moreover, I used almost 1 and a half spray bottles to kill the same number of carpenter ants because their size is bigger than ghost ants.
Physical traps or sticky tapes can also capture many tiny ants on their sticky surface.
Infest on a small surface area
They build smaller mounds and occupy small surface areas on the ground, making it easy to control their propagating population.
Ant traps work efficiently and target tiny ant species quickly when their mounds are not large. You need only a few bait stations and a small amount of granular bait to kill their population.
Their nests are not deeper, which leads to the quick appearance of insects close to the entry hole when they detect a nutritional food source around their mounds.
Moreover, it takes less time to attract ants from tunnels close to the ground surface than those living 20 to 25 feet deep in the ground.
Their nests are not wider and occupy a few square feet on the ground surface. You do not need multiple bags of granular bait or gel traps to cover their nests.
High susceptibility
Small populations of tiny ants are more susceptible to traps than large populations because they cannot develop resistance against these traps.
A small number of foragers in the colony can die quickly after ingesting toxic bait ingredients. These traps do not provide any margin to learn and avoid baits for next time.
Moreover, these foragers die within several hours after being trapped on the sticky barriers and consuming toxic compounds in sugary baits.
Furthermore, it is challenging for a colony to survive without workers because they are responsible for providing food and nutrition to the colony.
Ingestion of some lethal baits also leads to the death of queens in addition to workers, resulting in the death of the entire colony within a few days.
Quick transfer of baits
They consume the food and quickly transfer it to a colony through regurgitation because they have small abdomens.
They cannot hold a large content of food and quickly empty their stomach by transferring food to queens and larvae. Moreover, these foragers carry food particles to their nests and store them.
Hungry or starving colony members feed on liquid baits and store food. In contrast, giant ants have more space to store food in their bellies and transfer it slowly.
So, ant traps or liquid and gel baits work quickly on these tiny ants and give quick results.
What ant traps work best on tiny ants?
Different types of ant traps work on tiny insects, like sticky tapes, dust, and liquid, granular, or gel baits. All these traps have varying effectiveness on targeted pests according to body size.
A few are versatile and work on a broad range of insects belonging to the category of ants. In addition, the liquid baits work best on these tiny creatures because they cover their bodies.
Spraying toxic liquid solution is an effective treatment against their population when their size is small, with tiny grooves or appendages.
Direct spraying of toxic solutions takes less time to kill ants, while granular baits take more time because you have to wait for them to come out of their nests and consume the ingredients.
In addition, liquid baits are also effective as they contain an attractant and a toxic substance that can kill insects. It can quickly attract them due to its sweet odor and target only tiny ants.
Big ants cannot make their way through tiny holes in the container and go away without consuming the bait ingredients.
So, dust and granular baits take more time and are less effective on ants than liquid baits or sprays that are quick in action and cause death immediately.
Which tiny ants can be removed using ant traps?
Ant traps are good at capturing little black ants commonly present in the garden and infest indoor places when they need food.
Their colonies are polygynous, containing around 1500 to 2000 workers and multiple queens ranging between 2 and 30.
Multiple queens ensure the continuity of their population by replacing dead workers, so these traps can help kill their colonies by targeting queens.
In addition, tiny grease ants or thief ants are relatively small and easier to capture by physical traps or sticky tapes and liquid sprays.
Related Articles:
