Aussie Finch Forum

my maggots are being stolen by ants. any ideas how to stop them?
i thought i might put them in a container to mature that the ants cant get into but this would mean it would have to be air tight, is that ok?

I have had that trouble with ants getting my termites, How big is the container? you can place inside a shallow dish of water or if you have a large container like I do with my termites I put a smear of petroleum jelly around the outside lip of the container.

Couple of options I have seen, Ive tried option one and it works
Option 1 ANT MOAT
maggots in bowl, bowl placed in larger bowl that has water in it.

Option 2 DROP IN FEEDER
maggots in sealed ex chinese takeaway container with holes in the bottom, placed so the maggots can drop through onto a feeding tray.

Buzzard-1 wrote:I have had that trouble with ants getting my termites, How big is the container? you can place inside a shallow dish of water or if you have a large container like I do with my termites I put a smear of petroleum jelly around the outside lip of the container.

Yes dad said if there are black ants around the house there will be no termites eating the house.lol
Dad hates termites he thinks they are going to eat the house.


Down at the park there is a termite nest in a tree and there are trails going up the tree that termites use,iam going to get some soon and see if the gouldians and canaries eat them.

Harvey11

G'day Harvey, I think you'll find the Gouldians won't like them much, but the Canary's will love you for them.

Buzzard-1 wrote:I have had that trouble with ants getting my termites, How big is the container? you can place inside a shallow dish of water or if you have a large container like I do with my termites I put a smear of petroleum jelly around the outside lip of the container.

i would try the water but am worried that the maggots will get too cold...
is an air tight container ok?

will the petroleum jelly stop the ants from getting in to the container?

benrayjay wrote:is an air tight container ok?

No they will suffocate. yes the Vaseline will stop them.

Food grade silicon spray may do the trick.They use this at work to keep bugs in containers so it possibly keep ants out.Reptile suppliers also used to stock a product called fluon, i used this with some success but it scracthes after awhile and allows access again to ants.

lots of tiny holes in the top of the airtight container (now a bit of a misnomer ) and some maggot sized holes in the bottom so they can drop through.

thankyou blue butterfly, the small holes in the "air tight" container sounds like the go. i will try it out.