21 replies to this topic

[rarankhan]

Okay, i got harvester ant workers from antsalive.com and I am keeping them in an omni nest. I'm using them as an experience before owning a queen. So far things are going good. Like 8 ants drowned in a wide surface I used yesterday for water so I put 3 water bottle caps in and only 1 has drowned so that was one problem I fixed, though I would like a better solution for providing water, any tips would be helpful. Most of the ants spend time foraging and I guess that's normal since they're workers, thought that's when I observe them. I put some ant food I got and fish food and over night they put it in the water dish. I removed that one since, and when I put them in the dark with the caps they did the same thing. I changed the food and water again and put in a piece of kale and an apple slice. I think they're sucking the juice from the apple because they were biting into it and their abdomens were pumping so I think they were drinking. The kale like the others they bit into pieces and dunked in the water. I don't know if this is normal, or something is wrong, or maybe they're making it soft to eat. Anybody know? Thanks and any tips for this newbie would be appreciated. Thanks. 

[Crystals]

I highly recommending going through the List of Handy links - http://www.formicult...of-handy-links/

It has tutorials for ant waterers, preferred foods, escape barriers, etc.

[rarankhan]

I highly recommending going through the List of Handy links - http://www.formicult...of-handy-links/

It has tutorials for ant waterers, preferred foods, escape barriers, etc.

I saw this page and your link on how to build a waterer and I don't have the supplies currently, so till then do you have any alternatives? And is the food in water thing normal?

[Crystals]

To prevent drowning, most people use a pop bottle cap with cotton inside.  Or the test tube method.

 

Your food in water description can mean 2 different things.  1. they are putting food, or any debris, on top of the water - this is normal for most ants to remove a drowning hazard.  2. they are soaking the food in the water and then drinking the water from it.  Some ants do this to transport water/sugars back to the nest, usually in species without social stomachs.

[rarankhan]

@Crystals Ahhh thank you.

That makes so much sense. The kale pieces are like lily pads on the water and the ants actually walk on them. Thank you. 

Edited by rarankhan, March 29 2015 - 6:58 PM.

[rarankhan]

Also, Crystals is the test tube method to give them water filling the tube halfway then plugging it with a cotton ball?

[antmaniac]

Try

1: Find a straw and cut it to a good size to fit in container when lay horizontally.

2: Put one end into a bottle of water.

3: Cover up the other end with finger.

4: Take the straw out and lay it horizontally into the container.

Also tilt the water back a bit, in case the ants put in stuffs and soak/leak out the water.

Edited by antmaniac, March 29 2015 - 7:27 PM.

[Crystals]

Also, Crystals is the test tube method to give them water filling the tube halfway then plugging it with a cotton ball?

Yes, it works for keeping founding queens in test tubes and for giving other ants a drink.

[rarankhan]

This might sound stupid and this also, shows how little I know about the hobby but in the test tube how do they get water?

Also, are paper towels in the nest okay?

[Crystals]

The water wicks through the cotton, they drink the water soaked into the cotton.

 

Paper towels in the nest.  Just loose in a formicarium?  Don't see why not. 

Using paper towel to replace the cotton in a test tube?  No, that doesn't work well.

[rarankhan]

Okay thank you. Yesterday some water as I was placing the water in fell. So I pressed a paper towel on the wet spot and by the time I was done, ants were swarming it, so I left it in there because if I tried to remove it, there would be multiple casualties. 
The test tube thing I think is worth trying because it would prevent any casualties. Also, do ants like kale?

Cuz I put some in there yesterday and its almost all disappeared. 

[antmaniac]

Keep in mind that the ants may tear and break down the paper towel. Then they will use them to block out the light and build a nest. Also moulding would be another issue you have to consider.

[rarankhan]

@Antmaniac

They have taken in a small bit of paper towel in the nest. I think I should probably remove the paper towel since some of it is wet and as you said mold can be a problem. 

[rarankhan]

Also, the nest is relatively dark for at least 7 hours in the morning and for the entire night. I put them in a cabinet of mine. It's a pretty small cabinet with plenty of air flow so there aren't any fluctuations in humidity, in case you were concerned about the well being of the ants/ 

[antmaniac]

In the dark is fine. But as soon as you observe them, they will see the light and they will try to block the light from their nest. The only issue in total darkness is that you have to make sure the ants can't squeeze through any gaps at all. They would be wandering around and test your "security".

[rarankhan]

I would most definitely agree about them testing the security. They actually broke one of the creases in the outworld. It's sealed with silicone so I'm suspecting they bit off the silicone. Luckily I got up in the morning and saw before any escaped. I reinforced all the sides with multiple layers of heavy duty transparent tape and hopefully everything will be fine. 

Also, as you said when I bring them into the light for a little while they panic. 

[dean_k]

Make sure that your ants are used to light unless it's species that must have darkness. It's better that way for future anting.

 

All of my colonies are used to light and most of them don't even mind direct bright LED lights (from my microscope) on them. I want to observe ants and that is what I intend to do.

[antmaniac]

If it is indoor and you want to make the ants feel as nature as possible, you can try put them in normal room environment. That is, bright during the day or when light is on and dark during the night. This way they wouldn't feel the abrupt change and disturbance. This also saves your electricity bill.

 

Under the ambient light, my ants would behave normally. They only get annoyed when stronger lighting is required for photograph.

Edited by antmaniac, March 30 2015 - 3:36 PM.

[rarankhan]

They're harvester ants from Utah so I'm sure sunlight won't affect them. 

They're only a 300 or so workers. I'm using them as a learning experience as I said before so any mistakes will definitely help me when I get a new colony. 

[dean_k]

There aren't much mistakes to be made. Just use some common sense and most ant queens will do fine. There are certain species that require specific and precise settings but I am not interested in extreme anting.

 

The best way to learn is to have a lone queen starting from nothing. That's how I begun and I am satisfied with how I started.

 

A colony without a queen does not have the structure in my opinion.

Edited by dean_k, March 30 2015 - 3:42 PM.