160 replies to this topic

[ANTdrew]

T. Immigrans like kielbasa. They must have immigrated from the old country like my people.

[VenomousBeast]

So, I'm doing some experimentation with what Trachymyrmex septentrionalis like. 

This is what I've found so far:

-Greater Plantain (a type of meadow plant with broad leaves)

-cracker part of poptarts (They'll also make a chocolate liquid solution and put it on their fungus and the fungus grows on that if you use the S'mores poptarts)

-Bran Flakes

-catkins (Highly favored)

-Caterpillar Frass (Favorite!)

-oatmeal is currently being tested

-noodles is currently being tested

-rice is currently being tested

-dried apples is being tested but they seem to take attention to it instantly

 

I'll see what else they like after a series of more tests with apples, rice, noodles, and oatmeal. If you have any more to add please feel free to add to the list. I'm still looking for better options to help them feed their fungus as it's not as big as I'd like.

[ForestDragon]

From what I have noticed from my Tapinoma sessile they prefer anything sweet and go NUTS for honeydew melons like they flat out moved brood to the first chamber so they could feed it to them right when they brought it back

[electricv]

How funny, my Camponotus herculeanus went completely bonkers over greasy cooked chicken.  My one queen even left for formicarium, went down an 8" tube and into the outworld to drag it in because her workers weren't bringing it fast enough.  I have never seen her leave the formicarium before so I was quite surprised.

lol

[dominatus]

My Camponotus decipiens enjoy crickets, grasshoppers (a lot), honey, sugar water, live termites and fruit flies (like to hunt them a lot), other ants' brood.

[SuperFrank]

Odontomachus bruennus will accept dehydrated bloodworms, they must be offered dry ime, not soaked or moistened or it will be ignored, i have used nurbs's rehydrated blood worm method successfully on all my other species but was unsuccessful with O bruennus until i tried it dry. Extremely convienient feeder, i just shake some in every day, they don't need carbs so other than fruit flies bloodworms are their staple and the colony is thriving. I will try it will haematodus and ruginodis in the near future

Edited by SuperFrank, September 7 2019 - 8:47 PM.

[TechAnt]

Pheidole californica’ s diet (at least my colony).

Chicken Breast from Costco (can’t remember the name brand): Swarms the piece within a hour.
Dry Bloodworms: Sometimes eats
Bloodworm Soup: Completely Ignores.
Honeywater: Drank the entire liquid feeder in a few hours. They like it a lot.
Sugar Water: Little to no interest after a entire day.
Freeze Dried Cricket: No interest, moves away from it.
Chia Seeds: Immediately goes at and drags into nest. (Will probably need major’s help to crack/sometimes need a energy boost to carry. They are quite heavy for the ants.)
Flax Seeds: Eats.
Red Hummingbird Nectar: Drinks occasionally, looks cool seeing little light red gasters every now and then.
TarHeel 2 protein 2 sugar liquid juice mixture: Drinks occasionally.
Protein Jelly: You can always see a few workers eating the stuff, they enjoy it.
Fruit flies: Quickly will find and drag into the nest (having majors in the colony helps them process it)
Wet bloodworms: Loves to drag into nest and cut up (majors are not required to process it)

Edited by TechAnt, August 7 2020 - 11:02 PM.

[AntaholicAnonymous]

In my experience lasius niger do like raw chicken in my case way more than cooked chicken.
They wait until the surface dried out a bit and then they cut out chunks

[MrKotter]

I've had a lot of success over the last 5 months with feeder goldfish to supplement discoid roaches and mealworms.  You can buy them in any pet store and my Camponotus floridanus and Solenopsis invicta love them.  

[Paradyme]

I can confirm (with pics even!) that Camponotus novaeboracensis love mosquitoes, particularly big males. That's what I fed them a decade ago. Alive, and they'd chase them down.

 

I have 3 novae queens atm that are just getting started (first nanitics) so I'll see what they like in the earlier stages and make a note of it.

[TechAnt]

Camponotus Vicinus diet (my colony, all black variety)
Protein Jelly: Eats
Honey: Enjoys
Chicken: Eats
Red Hummingbird Nectar: Like to sip
Fruit flies: love to drag in the nest and devour
TarHeel ants 2:2 Sugar protein liquid mix: Ignores mostly, will look at it for a bit.
Sunburst Ant Nectar: Testing
Slightly wetted bloodworms: Eats
Dry bloodworms: Eats

Edited by TechAnt, August 7 2020 - 11:01 PM.

[TechAnt]

Tetramorium immigrans diet:
Fruit flies: Eats.
Red hummingbird nectar: drinks.

Dry Bloodworms: Eats

Edited by TechAnt, August 18 2020 - 11:07 AM.

[AntKeepingNJ]

Will Tapinoma sessile accept peanut butter as a protein source? I don't have good source of feeder insects.

[gs5248]

Honestly, most ants just need proteins, especially insect proteins. It is really just required to keep them healthy, unless you have some specialized genus or species like Leaf cutters, or harvesters. But they would still probably eat, it just would not work long term. I also generally do not like to feed ants food with both sugars and proteins, because ants like to choose their own ratio, and feeding them foods that have both things in then messes that up.

Edited by gs5248, March 26 2021 - 2:27 PM.

[mantisgal]

I can't recall if it's here on this list but in my deep-dive into the habits and life-cycle of my Prennies (P. imparis), it was observed that they would glut on the juices of earthworms. In the wild they appear to remember where the dessicated bodies are to return to them after rain. I tried a bit of worm in my (late) Science Outpost: though results appear inconclusive I will try again after nanitics *fingers crossed*

 

They are also alleged to herd aphids, or at least take advantage of their honeydew

[Chickalo]

How do I explain to my mom I need to prepare banana with water for my Myrmica  !  But seriously, how would I give it to them?  Like in a small dish or liquid feeder or test tube or...?

[ReignofRage]

How do I explain to my mom I need to prepare banana with water for my Myrmica  !  But seriously, how would I give it to them?  Like in a small dish or liquid feeder or test tube or...?

A small dish would work.

[gs5248]

How do I explain to my mom I need to prepare banana with water for my Myrmica  !  But seriously, how would I give it to them?  Like in a small dish or liquid feeder or test tube or...?

The struggle for us younglings is real. I feel like every time I tell my parents I need something for my ants to eat, they are holding in laughter, or they say, "just give them a cracker or something."

[cap_backfire]

Just start eating more fruit and give those ants a bit of what you're eating.  I gave my Discolors a whole apple core for a few days and BAM.   They swarmed it until I removed it.   Well, them and their isopod neighbors went bananas on it.   

[TexTech]

Cephalotes texanus

 

Likes:

-Pillbugs

-Corn Syrup

-Mealworm innards

-termites

-bird dung

-nectar