Ninja ants!

September 9, 2009 5:48 PM

Ants (or something) in my bed?

For the past several nights I've been bitten by fire ants or some type of crazy huge ant. I have no idea where they have gotten in, but they are tearing up my legs, but only in bed. I have no food or water in my room, and my boyfriend doesn't get bit by them when he's over. I get bit a lot less by them a lot less when he's over as well. I've had my apartment sprayed, it does nothing.

My questions - why the hell are ants in my bed? How do I get rid of them, if I can't find the point of entry? I don't even see them during the day, only at night, if I'm lucky.

posted by Attackpanda to home & garden (12 comments total)

Bedbugs?
posted by dfriedman at 5:49 PM on September 9

take a pic of said ant. I'll bet its bedbugs.
posted by jak68 at 5:50 PM on September 9

If they're "crazy huge," they're probably not bedbugs. Maybe a spider of some type which likes your shaven legs better than your boyfriend's hairy legs.
posted by torquemaniac at 6:04 PM on September 9

I've seen the same ants around my apt sometimes, I have no idea where they are coming from, they don't go near the kitchen. How do I get rid of them if I can't find any point of entry?
posted by Attackpanda at 6:11 PM on September 9

It sounds more like carpenter ants. Apparently they're biters, and they forage at night. They vary by location, but here's a fact sheet for Nebraska
posted by stefanie at 6:11 PM on September 9

I live in FL ("Bug Central") and have had unbelievably good results with Ortho Home Defense Indoor Insect Killer - "Made With Pure Orange Peel Extract." I normally don't use chemicals due to housing a flock of parrots, but this product really does the job and is totally pet/child safe. Not only does it kill the offending insects, it will prevent further intrusion. UPC is 71549 04875. Should be available at your local Home Store. Start by spraying around your bed, then hit the perimeter of your abode to keep them out.
posted by torquemaniac at 6:38 PM on September 9

For what it's worth, fire ants are pretty tiny (but pack a huge wallop). If it was bedbugs I would suspect the bites to not be limited to the legs, but on your torso and on your boyfriend as well. Do you live in a wooded area or in a house with an older frame? Carpenter ants would be a good fit then, and they pinch like a mofo (no injection).
posted by mrmojoflying at 7:13 PM on September 9

It could be bedbugs. They look a bit like large-ish ants and when I had them, mainly bit my legs. Are the bites typically in a 3-in-a-row pattern? If so, it's bedbugs.

Oh, and they probably are biting your boyfriend too, but people react differently to bites. I barely show marks from ants and wasps, and nothing at all from mosquitos, but my exboyfriend would get huge welts from the same. Likely he just isn't reacting as much to the bites.
posted by internet!Hannah at 7:32 PM on September 9

I'm leaning more towards carpenter ants. I have an old wooden head and footboard that's pretty nicked up and has been for a while. None of the bites are three in a row, more sporadic and only on my lower legs, nothing above the knee.
posted by Attackpanda at 8:09 PM on September 9

on your boyfriend as well.

Some people do not react to bedbug bites.
posted by nestor_makhno at 10:17 PM on September 9

If it's ants, the AskMe consensus product for killing them is Terro bait/traps. Not sure if it works as well on carpenter ants as the little guys, though.
posted by Citrus at 10:47 AM on September 10

Everyone was wrong including me. They were chiggers. I realized I didn't have anything until I came back from hiking. They are now slowing dying.
posted by Attackpanda at 4:43 PM on September 25