Attractants

Attractants play a huge role in preventing the establishment and invasion of various problematic pests. Pests such as flies, cockroaches, ants and even wild animals usually are lured by special attractants because of their need for mating and reproduction. If there are pheromones in the air, they are easily drawn to the source, which pest control experts use to their advantage to seize and eliminate them.

Chemical attractants produced by plants and by insects themselves has been the answer to the public's demand for more potent insect-control agents and for homeowners that want a less toxic method of addressing a pest problem.

On this page you will learn about attractants, the pros and cons of using attractants and how to properly apply attractant based products around your home to treat for rodents and insects. You can also shop the best products we carry in stock which contain attractants.

What are attractants?

Attractants are any chemical or substance that lures insects or other problem pests to a trap, thereby removing them from crops, animals, stored products or areas which they infest.

While attractants can be a substance or the scent of a food source which the target animal enjoys, the most active attractants are sex attractants. Sex attractants are also called pheromones, and are highly specific and therefore excellent tools for detecting and estimating insect infestations. These and other natural attractants and repellents are useful in several ways for controlling harmful insects. 

Aside from pheromones, other attractants include food scents that a target pest is known to enjoy like peanut butter in case of rodents and floral or sugar-based scents for insects.

Conditions for Using Attractants

Attractants can be used in food plants, kitchens, restaurants, food processing plants, hospitals, residences, zoos and residential areas.

Customers who prefer to use attractants often do so because it is a relatively cheap, quick and easy method of capturing mice, rats or other insects which have infested their homes or places of business.

It can be hard to go on the hunt and inspect for pests, so attractants often do the work for you by luring and capturing the offending pest with an attractant.

Benefits of Using Attractants

The main benefit of attractants is that they are relatively cheap and easy to use. Depending on whether the attractant is a trap or a poisonous sort of bait, pest control products which contain an attractant can quickly address and eliminate a pest infestation.

Attractant Drawbacks

The biggest drawback to attractants is that their success is dependent on proper application by the applicator and the characteristics of the environemnt in which it is placed. Some products that contain food attractants must not compete with an actual food source. If the treatment area is not properly sanitized or prepared, the product may be less effective.

There are times when attractants may not work because the offending pest developing a resistance to the attractant (particularly when it's a food scent).

Products that are solely an attractant don't have any killing or trapping capabilities, so they have to be combined with an actual trap or insecticide that you have to buy separately.

Our Recommendations

There are attractant products that are combined with insecticides or traps and there are products we have which are only an attractant that should be used in tandem with a trap or insecticide. Here are what our experts have compiled to be the best products which utilize attractants.

Musca-Stik - Musca-Stik and Musca-Stik Jr. are insecticide-free, odor-free, indoor/outdoor sticky fly traps that attract flies two ways - Musca-Glo™ orange colored paper attracts flies visually while the powerful fly sex pheromone, Muscalure, doubles the attraction power.

Pro-Pest Pantry Moth & Beetle Traps- Pro-Pest Pantry Moth & Beetle Traps are pre-baited with pheromones to attract a wide range of pantry pests that commonly infest households. The pheromones in Pro-Pest Pantry Traps will attract Indian Meal Moth, Almond, Raisin, Tobacco, and Mediterranean Flour Moths. Our traps also include a pheromone to attract Cigarette Beetles which are common pests.

Tools Needed

Depending on the product you are using (whether it is a combination attractant and trap/insecticide or a stand-alone attractant) you will need the help of a trap or insecticide if simply using an attractant. No matter what you use, it's important to have on the proper PPE before handling attractants and pesticides.

User Guide

Products containing attractants vary and are not all universally applied the same way. Applying a product containing attractants can be as simply as opening the product up and placing it in areas where you wish to target an infestation. Be sure to look at the product label directions and instructions for proper application instructions.

Step 1: Use The Proper PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) For Your Application

At bare minimum we recommend using gloves, safety glasses and protective mask before handling attractants and accompanied traps and pesticides.

Step 2: Set the trap or "kill zone"

Place the trap down in an area you wish to control your target pest or if using a pesticide, apply it in an area where you will be placing an attractant to lure your target pest to the area where they will succumb to the pesticide you have applied.

Step 3: Apply attractant

Place the attractant either on top of a trap (snap trap or glue trap) or in an area where you have placed rodent poison or insecticides. After this, it will only be a matter of time before the target pest is captured or killed after the attractant lures them.

Key Takeaways

• Attractants are a helpful tool used to capture problem pests via luring them via either sex pheromones, special scents or food attractants that the target pest enjoys.
• Attractants can be stand-alone or they can be combined with a trap or pesticide.
• The effectiveness of an attractant depends upon the pest type and the conditions of the area (ie. your home etc.)