What are these little critters?

So I was hoping someone would be able to identity these little critters that I assume are ants and hopefully give some ideas on how to get rid of them?

I am attaching some pics but let me know if you need any close ups. I use Tomcat glue boards around my apartment just so I know what really goes "bump" in the night and never really had any issues (besides the occasional bug, but its Florida after all) until these little guys showed up.

I have been told by the pest control guy at my apartment that these are "ghost ants" but I have yet to positively identity them myself or with a 3rd source. I mainly see them in the kitchen near the stove and dishwasher. They seem very attracted to Terro Ant Bait but not sure if that is doing the trick to get rid of the colony if they are ants. They will be gone for a day then i'll look close and see maybe 5-10 dead ones around the traps and I see a few dead inside of the traps so no clue. Anyone know of any good gels or hard baits that aren't liquid?

At least hopefully someone can identity these. PS not 100% sure both are the same but I am pretty sure both are insects.

 

I can’t tell much from the pics but if they have a 3-segmented body then they are ants. Terro and all baits work slowly. Don’t spray anything anywhere near your baits as you will be working against yourself. Terro also comes in a small bait station that is more user friendly and requires less maintenance.

There are various gel baits available over the counter. They come in plastic syringes. Make sure that you get the ant bait rather than the roach bait.

Their behavior is typical of what happens when baiting for ants/roaches. All baits work slowly, especially ant baits, otherwise they would never get it back to the colony.

What is the pest control guy doing for the ants? If he’s spraying I would hope and trust that he is using a non-repellent spray.

Keep us posted.

 

They are sooooooo small that I can't really tell even getting one up close if they have the 3 segmented body BUT they do seem attracted to the Terro but I can't tell if they are actually eating any or not so the drops don't seem t be getting smaller. But they seem to congregate around the baits. I also have a bunch of bait stations. Should I just keep up with the Terro or should I try the gel?


Would using a gel AND leaving the Terro baits out be ok or would that be counter productive?

I really don't know what the apartment pest control guy does but he carriers a "one type fits all" cannister of spray around and just sprays it all over for whatever bug you complain about and it always gives me migraines so I tend not to invite him in.

 

here is a MUCH better picture... Apparently they are red??

 

Maybe some type of grain beetle?

 

I too think a grain beetle. In any case I’m confident that this is what we call “stored product pests”. If the others in the earlier pictures are the same insect then there is a problem in a nearby pantry, closet, etc. Careful inspection of food commodities such as dry pet food, flour, grains, nuts, seeds, pancake mixes, etc is called for.

The ant bait and glue traps are useless for these guys. Finding the source and thoroughly cleaning the entire cabinet are called for. Don’t stop when you find the source as there may be secondary sources in the same area. Be ready to look into boxes that you haven’t looked at for a long time. Even if unopened it could still be infested.

Keep us posted.

 

Thank you! I think I have identified them as a flour beetle.

Flour Beetle Facts & Control - How to Get Rid of Flour Beetles

Now do I need to worry about a "queen" like with ants or will a good through cleaning of the kitchen and panty do the job? Should I worry about areas in the house where I don't eat or don't have any food or just areas with food. I don't want them moving from one area to another

What about some pesticides to spray in the cabinets/cracks/crevices around the kitchen? I've seen some websites suggest Phantom Aerosol Insecticide II or PT Ultracide but those are kinda expensive.

 

They are not social insects so no queen. You have to find the infested material. All of it. Don’t stop when you find one box, etc.

Start inspecting in the storage that is closest to the problem and go from there. Insecticides really aren’t necessary. If you don’t find the source(s) then the insecticide would only treat the symptoms.

Designate a large block of time and have good lighting handy and take your time. Be methodical. Have a large trash bag nearby. Get rid of anything you don’t use anymore or that is old.

Let’s assume that you find all the sources and clean well. Their gestation period is such that you will continue to find some for a while though there should be a noticeable improvement right away. Don’t get discouraged.

 

OK, thank you so much for your help! Thankfully most of my cabinets only have pots, pans in them so it will be easy to just throw all those in the dishwasher and I was planning on vaccuming out all the insides and then using swiffers to pick up anything I missed and then wipe down with water/bleach mix. And just to confirm I shouldn't have to worry about them moving to a different part of the house right. I only ever eat in the dining room or kitchen so no food should be anywhere else for them to munch on. I'm really relieved It wasn't an ant infestation.

 

Just focus hard on the stored products that I described earlier. That’s where they will be unless something unusual is stored elsewhere. Sometimes old clothing such as furs, woolens, feathers, dried fruit decorations, etc. will cause problems but usually it is the type of food materials described earlier.

 

Well I cleaned last night and no more in the kitchen today so yay! But I did find some in the entry hall closet and in the laundry room. No clue what is attracting these little guys. No food or old clothes or anything in either of those places. I did a lot of chalking tonight to try and seal up any possible entrance for these guys. Hmmm. And I didn't really find anything infested and I cleaned every single cabinet and all over the kitchen. So annoying. If I did want to try a spray any suggestions?

 

Is there an attached garage to the laundry room? If so, look for bird seed, grass seed, pet food and similar products in the garage.

Find an insecticide that is labeled for “stored product pests” if you wish to spray though I wouldn’t as it won’t be necessary if you found/removed the source and it won’t help if you didn’t find/remove the source.

Another thought that we want to hang on to is the fact that we still don’t have a positive ID on these guys yet. Take specimens to a local county agricultural agent who will help in identification. They will be objective and neutral. A positive ID will lead us in the proper direction to find their harborage, food, habits and potential control.