Reptile & Amphibian Forums

For any of you that live in the south and try to keep any turtles in outdoor pens, what do you do about fire ants? They are pretty bad at my new place, but I won't put poison in the turtle pens, obviously. I am also very nervous to put poison outside of the turtle pen since it also kills other insects. (I'm worried about the turtles eating crickets, etc. that have eaten some poison before crawling into the outdoor pen. I am also very worried about the fireants getting to the turtles - especially the young turtles - and their food.

I'm sure some of you have already solved this issue, so what do you do?

Thanks!
KJ
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Help to protect our rights

Crazy as it sounds, I built an outdoor enclosure and mounted it on PVC pipe "stilts" set in buckets of water to thwart fire ants. My turtles have lived in it for 2 summers. However, I know other people in my area (south TX) who keep adult turtles in "normal" pens with no detrimental effects.
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Chris McMartin
www.mcmartinville.com
I'm Not a Herpetologist, but I Play One on the Internet