Is there a way to put food inside where wild geckos can get to it, but ants cant?

[Sword of Spirit]

There are multiples species of geckos that like to come into my house, but I've taken steps to cut down on bugs. I would like to have a few wild geckos living inside (I like Mourning Geckos in particular), but it seems that the geckos that come in or hatch now either die of starvation or leave. Letting more bugs in on purpose is not an acceptable solution.

Since Mourning Geckos apparently do well on the Crested Gecko diet, I thought that I might try getting some of it and putting it where they can get to it so they have something to eat when they aren't eating the remaining bugs that come inside.

I thought I'd start experimenting today with a hatchling Mourning Gecko I found while cleaning. I put her back where I found her, and put a little piece of fresh mango in a plastic bottle cap nearby. However, tiny ants discovered the mango a few hours later.

Geckos are great climbers, but so are ants. Is there any way to place food in such manner that geckos can get to it but ants can't, thus allowing me to feed them without inviting an ant infestation? (I'm assuming bugs will eat Crested Gecko diet, but if that is incorrect, please let me know, because that would mean the problem is already solved as soon as I get the food.)

Thanks for any advice!

 

[acpart]

You could try spraying the outside of the container you put the fruit in with some oil so the ants won't be able to get in, but outside of that you may be out of luck. Can these geckos that get into your house get back out? If so, they should be able to find bugs on their own.

Aliza

 

[Sword of Spirit]

You would think they would leave before starving, wouldn't you!?

But I've had at least 3 that looked thin, and then I found their corpses later. Some of the geckos that come in are just visiting and leave again, but others seem like they can't find the way out (I would think they can leave however they got in--either under the front door, or possibly through the light fixtures, unless there is some other route they have I'm not aware of).

I'm not sure what else would be causing their deaths, although it has been an especially hot summer with temperatures hitting 90 inside, so I'm sure that couldn't be helping them. I did just move to the area a few months ago, so I'm still trying to figure everything out.

I'm assuming geckos can't climb oil either, so we're talking about setting it up so they could avoid the oiled surfaces but the ants couldn't (like making it a small enough lip the geckos could jump over)?