2 replies to this topic

[DolG]

I plan to have a new ant colony(Messor).

I accidentally found an article: https://www.research...ithema_humile. 

This article made me take a fresh look at the development of ants. Showed me a pattern in the effect of temperature on colony growth. Briefly about this article: scientists took the "eggs" of ants and at different temperatures watched as they develop to adult individuals. This article contains a lot of interesting information. In my opinion the most useful conclusions:

1) the optimum temperature for the development of ants 26 C, with maximum survival;

2) at a temperature of 26 C, the average period of development of ants is reduced from 34 days to 16.

I read a lot of information about the effect of temperature on the development of various species of ants. It turns out that the optimum temperature for different species of ants can be very different. 

I think that if you make an incubator in which the temperature would be regulated and stable, then you can create ideal conditions for the development of an ant colony. As a result, reduce the time of migration of the colony from the incubator to the ant farm.

It is interesting to know the opinion of reputable keeper on this issue.

[CoolColJ]

I use 27 in all my setups, working great so far

[Somethinghmm]

The temperature you should keep them depends on the species. I recommend you use a heating cable and heat one side of their setup. If they move away from the heating cable you can just heat less of their nest or don't heat them at all. If they're on the heated portion you can heat more of their nest