911 Help!! common ants have invaded my gecko setup!

E

ewa2457

New member
Have two Giant day geckos in a Zoo Med 24" x 24" enclosure. Just noticed ants in the food bowl and after misting the tank, hundreds of ants came from substrate!! First time I have ever seen this and not sure what to do. Ants cannot come out...or they will be all over the house. if they stay in, sure the geckos are in danger. Even if I am able to safely remove the geckos into another make shift home, how do I rid the ants?
First things first, anyone have to deal with this before? Any and all suggestions are welcome.
Live in NY and this is about the time they start coming out searching and am ready for them...but not in the gecko tank.

Still too cold to move the tank anywhere outside. Have to remove/kill the ants with something that will not harm the geckos.
 
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
Temporarily remove the geckos (and furnishings). Vacuum up the substrate with the ants.

Taking the tank outside (on a deck or in a yard) may make this easier.

Place ant traps near doorways and other places where ants may enter.
 
E

ewa2457

New member
I actually sealed any small openings, used sticky tape around all the top edges to prevent escape by ants. Then basically drowned them! Added gallons of water into the substrate. the ones that tried to escape were "removed". Typically keep the lower substrate, about 1" - 2" of drainage material, full of water. But I added another 2+" and it seemed to work. Have a few scavengers that I still remove daily, but the hundreds that were there are now gone. Plants are happy, humidity went up quite a bit for couple of days and geckos are not stressing.
 
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
:banana: for your feedback!

Some day maybe someone else will get nasty buggers like ants and be able to use your solution BEFORE ants kill their geckos. :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top