Pantry Moths around my birds!

Hi so Im not trying to copy anyone but the ants in the bird room reminded me of the pantry moths in my room where the birds are. They are multiplying in there and they are just everywhere! Iv killed like 25 so far and they still come back! :12: I don't want to spray at all so what do I do!
Im sorry if I look like im copying the ants in the bird room Im just so mad!

Do you know what they're feeding on??? You find that out first then you can get rid of them all together. When I used to order seeds in bulk from a seed company, I get seed moth everywhere, makes me so mad....So I put the seeds in a tightly sealed container, the bags I'm using. Then I deep freeze the rest and didn't have moth anymore. When I brought two rescue birds home along with their cage they had seed moth all over. I took the cage outside and sprayed it down but found them coming out from the crevice holes in the cage and from their food. After they all came out from their pupa, I eliminated them all together and threw away their food, that solved the issue. Never see another one again and it's been a year now....I usually sit there with a vacuum cleaner and suck them all into the vacuum as I see them fly out, it's easier that way then to chase them down.

They are after seeds and grains. I bought some millet in bulk, but was so sorry few days later as I found some in the container with millet. I was lucky because it was in a very tightly closed container.
I would try to get rid off all seeds and grains you have in the house, because they spread everywhere they can get to. They lay eggs, so even you don't see them, they appear later.
The next step is to get few air tight containers for storage.

Your pantry moths are also called seed/meal/flour moths and they're coming from your bags/containers of bird seed.....

If you look on your walls, usually at corners & up to the ceiling corners, you should find more of them.....they will be crawling up the walls.....the eggs hatch in a couple of days and stay in the larval stage for up to some 40 weeks, then pupate, grow into adults & start the cycle all over again.....

They're busy little things, with each female laying up to 400 eggs, they hatch out, eat through your seed bag/container, go about their merry business.....their life cycle only lasts about 30 days, but then nobody gave them a calendar, so they don't all hatch at the same time & like the Timex watch, they just keep coming.....several years ago, when I had an infestation, my birds helped with the cleanup...they were eating the larvae & winged moths they caught.....

Get rid of the seed/bird food and when you replace the bird food, store it in smaller air-tight containers that can be frozen.....check...very carefully...any unopened bird food bags/packages...there could be infestations already hatching out.....also check any dry oatmeal, dry cereals, flour, corn meals, etc., as these insects will chew through plastic bags & cardboard boxes.....when you throw out any adulterated foods, be sure to do so in outside trash containers, not in your household trash container.....you can vacuum up all the larvae & nests you find, but, again, empty, immediately after vacuuming, any bags used and again, be sure to empty the bags/containers in outdoor trash containers.....

Have fun now.....

Here is some information on your new found friends:

Indian Meal Moths: Indian Moth Pest Control - Stored Product Pests - PestWorld

http://lancaster.unl.edu/pest/resources/pantrypests304.shtml

weco said:

.....several years ago, when I had an infestation, my birds helped with the cleanup...they were eating the larvae & winged moths they caught.....

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LOL......that's funny, good birdies....

AWESOME info and links, Walt! Thanks so much.

I'd only like to add: They may be a big PITA, but they are pretty harmless.

I think this is a very good incentive to switch to pellets.

Prior to burd ownership, we got a bad batch of cornmeal that was infested. Had to throw away several hundred dollars worth of food, they would eat through the bags and boxes in the pantry. Took a good year to wipe them all out. Get rid of the contaminated food, it is not worth salvaging and do you best to contain them in that area, they will go after dry dog food, flour, bread, cereal....anything grain/seed based.

The majority of items in my pantry are in hard plastic containers because I have dealt with insect infestations in the past. I didn't get them from bird food, but from something brought home from the store. My dog food and bird pellets are stored away from my pantry in containers designed to be airtight.

My advice is to repackage everything you have and see what develops because not everything may be infested and have to be thrown out.

We get them all the time at our place. They've infested my breakfast cereal I've even gotten them in supposedly airtight containers, in my experience they lay eggs around the seal, and the tiny grubs can "worm" their way in. Unless of course the contents were already infested. Getting the pupae out of corners is annoying. Our Plumhead loves the grubs

Thanks guys, Ill try doing what you said thatll work. The birds throw food onto the floor and I have carpet so it gets down deep and I already keep their seed and pellets in air tight containers but if I freeze the food, wont that hurt my birds by freezing them?

No, deep freezing them kills off any excess pests and also keep the food fresher longer!

By the way, make sure its in a tight sealed container or good Ziploc bag to keep moisture out!

When I had my cockatiel we got pantry moths. The trick was to keep the food in a air tight container and clean the cage. Once we did that we had no problems.

Merlee said:

I think this is a very good incentive to switch to pellets.

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Ephestia moths will also infest pellets

Many years ago I worked in confectionery. One of the jobs I assisted with as an apprentice was control of moths in cacao beans, which has come into Au from Papua and Ghana. The beans were raw, and in large hessian bags. If a pile of bags got signs of infestation, they'd be fumigated- with methyl bromide, now banned. Quite scary, as there's no cure for MB poisoning. Also, between stacks we'd surround the stacks with pyrethrum in oil, which would kill crawling grubs.

They're all about the seeds. When you buy seed for your birds, either it's chemically treated or it likely contains moth larvae. The moth larvae are actually rather nutritious, so not bad for your birds But if you freeze the seed for 24 hours, it will kill off the larvae, and you won't have a house full of moths.

We had no idea where our moth infestation was coming from until we mentioned it to the bird store owner. I'm so glad we did! We're now freezing seed as we bring it home, and we're happily moth-free.

The cats seem a little disappointed...

I had the same problem. Bought some moth traps and they are almost gone...just the odd one flying around until either the birds or the trap gets it. The traps really work!

I know for a fact that pantry moths (or whatever other specie of nuisance moth this might be) don't only come in/with seeds. Several months ago I opened a brand new container of Italian bread crumbs, which still had the seal on. Boy was I ever so surprised at the amount of moth flying out when I removed the seal.

...and the breadcrumbs looked to be quite alive with all the little moth larvae in them.

No, I didn't use the breadcrumbs. :32:

Ewww that's so discussing!

As mentioned the eggs, larva and moths are harmless but annoying.

All seed attracts moths and may already have eggs laid in on the grain before you get it and even before it is mixed as bird seed. The best bet is to buy in small batches in bags that have no oxygen in them. Even this will only keep existing eggs from hatching and then once you open it all bets are off.

If you buy in bulk then be sure to freeze and refrigerate the food as soon as you get it so that the little buggers don't hatch. Warmer temps encourage them to hatch.

The best defense is a good offense when it comes to the moths.

I used to buy bulk seed and repack it and resell it. I packed it in vacuum sealed bags with all the air sucked out. It worked pretty well but if you suck too much air out the seeds will poke a hole in the bag and then again you have air and soon grubs.

You must be vigilant to wage war on the little beasties or resign yourself to a different kind of flying critter in your house. Watch out or the birds might be jealous.