Many curious souls were seen asking around on the internet a very basic yet important question: Do birds eat ants?
The short answer is: YES! They do!
I reckon it’s an essential knowledge for ones who prefer feeding the birds or the others who generally use pesticides to kill off ants.
Because the latter action can often be fatal to birds should they find ants within their diet list and end up consuming poison with it.
So as an extension to discussing which birds prefer ants and the types of ants they eat, I’ll also be telling you the safe & unsafe pesticides on ants to benefit the ant-eating birds.
By the end, you’ll learn a great deal about this matter and ensure that our feathery friends are kept out of harm’s way!
Contents
Birds Eating Ants: Why & How
Let’s now look at the reasons why birds eat ants and the ways these creatures perform this activity on a regular basis.
Why Do Birds Eat Ants?
Mostly, the smaller birds are the ones to consume ants more than their larger in size family members. Ants are a great source of protein for these birds and their constant muscle movements, flapping of wings etc. requires a huge amount of this food source than you could think.
Other reasons consist of food shortages, especially during winter times. Lot of the birds that live in such areas fail to meet the required amount of nutrition needed to keep them going. At times like these, even the bigger birds seek refuge in an ant-diet for survival.
How Do Birds Eat Ants?
There are many ways birds hunt down on ants. For instance, the most common one you’ll notice around the human habitats is birds stooping down on ground and picking up ants using their beak.
Some birds capture flying ants in mid air if they’re equipped with flight controllable wings. Other birds place themselves upon tree barks and uncover the tree shell to intervene in an ant track. This is performed either using the birds’ beaks, claws or both and allows them to collect their necessary protein.
11 Birds That Eat Ants
To be very honest, there are tons of birds who consume ants as a secondary or tertiary source of proteins. But some birds rely on ants as their primary protein source because of their locality or access or size. These birds are discussed briefly in this section.
Wren
Source: @adam_cutler_photography
Wren birds are very tiny in size and shape, thus you can understand their involvement in ant-eating. They are the ones who sit on the tree barks and collect a few ants until their needs are fulfilled. These birds have a few other nutrition sources as well, like mealworm, cricket, peanut etc. But ants are among their favorites in any given circumstance.
Flicker
Source: @rosie.n_photography
Flickers have around 14 species spread all across America. These black and white textured birds mostly feast on different kinds of seeds, like sunflower, nyjer and so on. However, their main protein source is always ants. The grownups consume full-sized ants while their younglings are fed with larvae and after a couple week’s growth, regular ants.
Woodpecker
Source: @jawa089
Woodpeckers can be located in every part of the world except for the Oceania region. Their taste for ants isn’t uncommon knowledge because their other food sources contain different types of seeds, corns, peanuts, mealworms etc. When it comes to ants, these birds use their sharp and strong beaks to drill holes to reach ant-lines and satisfy their nutritional needs.
Crow
Source: @rjustr
Crows are quite the infamous ones in the list who actually have one of the widest array of food palettes. Around human habitats, they’re seen scrummaging through wastes to gather their food as well as nesting materials.
Despite their eat-all attitude that grants them meals of corn, fruits, berries, seeds, they prefer meat over anything else. Among insects, ants have always been their favorites due to easy access and large quantities.
Raven
Source: @donnagregorywood
Ravens are much like crows with distinct differences and are available almost everywhere in the Northern hemisphere. Their taste for meat or fish is known to everyone and so is their nature. These passerine birds draped in all-black do carry symbolic meaning to a lot of people, but their protein diet is often fixated on ants, aside from meat or fishes.
Owl
Source: @trevorsbirds2
As there are a large number of owl species who are popular for dwelling at night, a great number of these birds are notorious for their hunting abilities. From rats to snakes, everything seems to satisfy the prowling creatures with sharp claws. But in terms of the smaller owls, ants have always been their comfort food because it takes less effort for capturing and consumption.
Nuthatch
Source: @pauldavidgoodmanphotography
Among the tiny black birds with white chests, nuthatches show a great knack for adaptability. When food sources are available during the summer, these birds take a liking to eating ants, spiders and other smaller insects. Winter is when they take up seed-eating and ants remain as the only protein food. When it comes to the younglings, their growth is ensured with only ants and spiders.
Cardinal
Source: @hockeyshotsplusphotography
These beautiful red-chested birds carry a distinct taste for consuming different kinds of seeds. From small to large ones, you’ll find them in your fields or gardens feasting on such a diet. In terms of protein, grasshoppers, ants, caterpillars, snails, spiders are listed among their favorites.
Chickadee
Source: @rob_in_ohio0717
The different varieties of Chickadee birds are spreaded across four continents. These birds often fly close to human habitats in search of food. Many generous individuals leave out food trays during winters filled with different types of seeds since these are Chickadee favorites. But out in the wild, their protein needs are fulfilled by eating ants and other insects.
Sparrow
Source: @kanon_orion
Out of the Passrine family, sparrows are regarded as the one group showing the ideal characteristics from the lot. These birds often reside around human settlements and consume thrown away foods as well as collect nutrition from livestock waste. Whether it’s the wilderness or a settlement, eating ants never seems to disappoint them aside from different crops or grains.
Robin
Source: @henryehrhardt
While robins have the capability to live on berries, fruits or seeds, insects are at the top of their chart for the favorites. They are a known insect killer and a garden infested with such creatures can witness an ant and worm removal. However, these birds tend to harm small plants, herbs and seeds, so it becomes a tough fix if you were planning on using them for ant-cleaning.
Types Of Ants In Bird Diet
Source: @panneerselvam.10
If you’re curious to learn what types of ants birds eat as part of their protein diet, I’ll break them down to you under three sub-categories in this section.
Black Carpenter Ants
These ants are the most common pests around most living habitats. They’re not harmful and form a line while traveling from one place to another. Such insects are found in the forests as well and have been a prime food choice for many birds. Even the new-born birds can be fed with black carpenter ants without any consequence.
Flying Ants
Regular ants with the ability to fly using their wings are called flying ants or “alates”. These aren’t much different from carpenter ants, except for the flying part. Their flying ability confirms that these insects are sexually mature to reproduce. They’re vulnerable to birds who can maneuver swiftly in mid-air and contribute to the food source of a large number of such birds.
Fire Ants
Fire ants are the culprits in the list who can cause you some degree of pain by injecting poison under your skin. These ants are what we call ‘red ants’ and we prefer to maintain some distance from such insects. A lot of the birds out there find pleasure in feasting these ants. However, most of the birds don’t prefer feeding their babies such insects because it can be very harmful for the delicate younglings.
Army Ants
Army ants are ranked among the most dangerous in the ant groups. They move around in large groups and often invade animal habitats, leaving behind nothing but bones. These ants are found inside the deep forests of Africa and Amazonian territories. Birds usually stay far from these ants and don’t fancy these to be included in their diet.
Can Ants Be Harmful To Birds?
In most of the cases, the answer is “NO”, ants cannot be harmful to birds. But the line of exception is drawn when it comes to fire ants and army ants.
There are many instances where a group of red ants were seen infesting on bird nests containing baby birds. Such invasions witness the death of all the younglings and the ants feast on them as a reversal of roles.
Army ants are another example that cleans out a bird nest and even fully grown birds should be allowed to reach in a large number. So in both of these special cases, ants CAN BE harmful to birds.
Details On ‘Anting’ Procedure
For those who aren’t aware of this term, let’s begin with ‘what is anting?’ Basically, it’s a procedure that a lot of the birds follow where they pick up ants with their beaks and rub them on the feathers. Other birds allow a small number of ants to climb underneath their feathers and wings.
What this procedure does is, these ants consume the stray residue or secretion to render the shininess and good health of bird feathers. It’s still an assumption which is yet to be investigated further.
Other experts believe that such behavior allows the birds to get rid of fleas or other parasites. If this is true, then you can realize how talented birds are as an animal, nothing shy of a feathery doctor!
FAQ
I’ll be ideating you further by drawing on some FAQs on the raised question “do birds eat ants?” After reading through this, your knowledge should be further improved on the concept.
Q: Do baby birds eat ants?
A: It depends on the type of bird as well as the ant category. A lot of the birds feed their younglings with carpenter or flying ants while another lot prefers not to take this route. So if I must answer briefly, then yes, baby birds do eat ants.
Q: Do ants eat birds?
A: As I mentioned earlier, fire ants and army ants can consume birds on certain occasions. Both of these are harmful for baby birds and the army birds in particular can cause some serious damage to fully grown birds as well.
Q: What are the harmful and safe ant-killers for birds?
A: You might not realize it, but your pesticide to remove pests or insects can end up killing birds! So I’ll urge you to check for the presence of these harmful substances on your pesticide before you make a purchase:
- Carbofuran
- Isofenphos
- Diazinon
- Azinphos-methyl
- Chlorpyrifos
These are the most common that you should steer clear from. If you want safe and bird-friendly pesticides, consider using these: Camicide, a mixture of vinegar, soap and salt because both of these are great for pest removal but don’t harm birds.
Thoughts
At the endpoint of this article, I hope your query on ‘do birds eat ants?’ has been satisfied with all the facts, anecdotes and evidence I provided throughout my writing.
One key takeaway from this question is you’ll be able to recognize the birds that eat ants in your surrounding area.
And another and more important one is the matter of pesticide use. Since I’ve enlisted the harmful ones and shown you a safe passage, I’m assuming you’ll take the bird-friendly approach on your way forward.
There were a couple of very interesting and probably lesser known facts like anting, which I personally found quite amusing upon learning.
Lastly, you now possess better knowledge than you used to on birds and their diet. It’s something that’ll stay with you till the end of your bird-loving journey!
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