{"id":2353,"date":"2022-02-09T19:09:06","date_gmt":"2022-02-09T11:09:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/?p=2353"},"modified":"2023-09-19T20:13:08","modified_gmt":"2023-09-19T12:13:08","slug":"can-ants-climb-walls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Ants Climb Walls?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Yes, ants can climb walls. Their legs have specialized adaptations that allow them to climb walls with ease. These adaptations include pretarsal adhesive pads, claws, and hairs. All these, let them cling onto and walk on walls as if they&#8217;re not affected by gravity.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In this article, we\u2019ll look into the climbing ability of ants as we discuss the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>How ants climb walls<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What surfaces ants can climb<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What surface ants can&#8217;t climb<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How to stop ants from climbing<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"536\" src=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/can-ants-climb-walls-b-1024x536.jpg\" alt=\"can ants climb walls\" class=\"wp-image-3321\" srcset=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/can-ants-climb-walls-b-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/can-ants-climb-walls-b-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/can-ants-climb-walls-b-768x402.jpg 768w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/can-ants-climb-walls-b.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:An_ant_walking_on_the_edge_of_the_wall.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Ahmad252<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">CC BY-SA 4.0<\/a>, via Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_64 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-light-blue ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title \" >Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/#How_Do_Ants_Climb_Walls\" title=\"How Do Ants Climb Walls?\">How Do Ants Climb Walls?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/#Pretarsal_Adhesive_Pads\" title=\"Pretarsal Adhesive Pads\">Pretarsal Adhesive Pads<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/#Claws\" title=\"Claws\">Claws<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/#Hair\" title=\"Hair\">Hair<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/#What_Can_Ants_Climb\" title=\"What Can Ants Climb?\">What Can Ants Climb?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/#What_Cant_Ants_Climb\" title=\"What Can\u2019t Ants Climb?\">What Can\u2019t Ants Climb?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/#How_to_Stop_Ants_from_Climbing_Walls\" title=\"How to Stop Ants from Climbing Walls\">How to Stop Ants from Climbing Walls<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/#Related_Questions\" title=\"Related Questions\">Related Questions<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/#Can_Ants_Climb_Ceilings\" title=\"Can Ants Climb Ceilings?\">Can Ants Climb Ceilings?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/#Do_Ants_Get_Hurt_from_Falling\" title=\"Do Ants Get Hurt from Falling?\">Do Ants Get Hurt from Falling?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-11\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-climb-walls\/#Summary_Can_Ants_Climb_Walls\" title=\"Summary: Can Ants Climb Walls?\">Summary: Can Ants Climb Walls?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_Do_Ants_Climb_Walls\"><\/span>How Do Ants Climb Walls?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There are 2 main factors that allow ants to climb walls. First off, is their strength.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ants are incredibly strong for their size. They&#8217;re fully capable of <strong>supporting their weight with minimal effort<\/strong>. This allows them to focus all their force on hanging onto walls or other surfaces. See this article to learn more about <a href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/are-ants-strong\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"2261\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ant strength<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The other factor is ant anatomy or more specifically, the structure of their legs. <strong>Ant legs feature three specific adaptations that help them climb walls.<\/strong> These are as follows: [<a href=\"https:\/\/journals.plos.org\/plosone\/article?id=10.1371\/journal.pone.0141269\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/journals.plos.org\/plosone\/article?id=10.1371\/journal.pone.0141269\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Pretarsal_Adhesive_Pads\"><\/span>Pretarsal Adhesive Pads<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Cambridge Ideas - Sticky Feet\" width=\"720\" height=\"405\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/hd5upt3IrWM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Ants have adhesive pads called arolia right between the claws of their feet. <strong>These soft and flexible pads secrete a fluid that essentially gives ants sticky feet.<\/strong> These allow ants to attach to surfaces by virtue of capillary adhesion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Claws\"><\/span>Claws<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Each ant leg contains claws which ants use to climb and hang on to things. Similar to how a rock climber uses a hook, they <strong>use these claws to grip the rough features of a surface.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Keep in mind that what may seem smooth to us, can be jagged to tiny creatures like ants. So what we perceive as smooth walls may actually be full of cracks and edges that ants can easily cling to and climb on.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Hair\"><\/span>Hair<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Ants have dense hairs on their feet. <strong>These hairs generate friction to help ants stick to surfaces.<\/strong> Like with claws, ants use these hairs to hang on to tiny bumps or cracks that serve as footholds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Can_Ants_Climb\"><\/span>What Can Ants Climb?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Ants can climb most surfaces<\/strong>. Their adhesive pads allow them to climb surfaces including the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>Glass<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Tiles<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Wood<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Plastic<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Metal<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Stainless Steel<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>As long as a surface has footholds, ants can usually climb it with no issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Cant_Ants_Climb\"><\/span>What Can\u2019t Ants Climb?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>As adept as ants are at climbing, they do have limits. T<strong>hey can&#8217;t climb wet or slippery surfaces.<\/strong> These surfaces include the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>Teflon and Fluon Coated Surfaces<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Polished Glass<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Aluminum<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>These surfaces are too smooth and slippery for ants. They make it hard for ants to find footholds to hold on to and therefore, cause them to slip and fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_Stop_Ants_from_Climbing_Walls\"><\/span>How to Stop Ants from Climbing Walls<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There are a few ways to stop ants from climbing walls. First off, you can <strong>use Fluon or Telfon<\/strong>. Again, these chemicals smoothen surfaces and make them slippery for ants. They&#8217;re commonly used by hobbyists to prevent ants from escaping their nests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Stop ants from escaping! Using Insect-A-Slip Insect Barrier (Fluon\u00ae) | Ant Keeping 101\" width=\"720\" height=\"405\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/CoriG0RwSqg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>You can also use other <strong>slick substances like Vaseline, vapor rub, and oil<\/strong>. Regularly apply these on a surface you don&#8217;t want ants to climb on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Related_Questions\"><\/span>Related Questions<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"536\" src=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/can-ants-climb-walls-2-1024x536.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2366\" srcset=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/can-ants-climb-walls-2-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/can-ants-climb-walls-2-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/can-ants-climb-walls-2-768x402.jpg 768w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/can-ants-climb-walls-2.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Ant_on_a_wall.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Juliane Collins<\/a>, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Can_Ants_Climb_Ceilings\"><\/span>Can Ants Climb Ceilings?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Yes, ants can climb ceilings.<\/strong> They do so in the same way that they climb walls. They use the special adaptations they have on their feet. The adhesive pads, claws, and hairs, allow them to climb ceilings upside down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Do_Ants_Get_Hurt_from_Falling\"><\/span>Do Ants Get Hurt from Falling?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>No, ants do not get hurt from falling. <strong>As small as they are, they tend to fall slowly and hence the impact when they hit the ground isn\u2019t fatal<\/strong>. Additionally, they have exoskeletons that deform, absorb, and spread the impact of falls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Check this article to learn more about why <a href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-die-from-falling\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"2047\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ants don&#8217;t get hurt or die from falling<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Summary_Can_Ants_Climb_Walls\"><\/span>Summary: Can Ants Climb Walls?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To summarize, ants can climb walls. In fact, ants are amazing climbers. Their legs are specially adapted to climb most surfaces.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That said, they can&#8217;t climb everything. Surfaces like polished glass and aluminum are too slippery for them to climb. Oils and other slippery chemicals will also cause them to slip and fall.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Yes, ants can climb walls. Their legs have specialized adaptations that allow them to climb walls with ease. These adaptations include pretarsal adhesive pads, claws, and hairs. All these, let them cling onto and walk on walls as if they&#8217;re not affected by gravity. In this article, we\u2019ll look into the climbing ability of ants&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3321,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2353"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2353"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2353\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3738,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2353\/revisions\/3738"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3321"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2353"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2353"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2353"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}