367 replies to this topic

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

omg lol

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

I'm going to feed my Camponotus some cricket leg and hopefully be allowed to take a pic or two of 'em. They went from 20ish workers down to 12 due to the nanitics committing a mass starvation event during diapause...yeah. They have a dead nanitic body in the test tube and are of course, recycling it via canibalism (I have fed them quite a lot...as much as they want!), so yeah... 

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

I'm going to give them a Jumbo sized meal (one whole cricket minus a leg, and a petri dish full of honeywater) but the question I have is not about the food, but the housing problem. I want to move them into a mini-hearth, but the queen isn't moving which poses a curious question; should I allow the colony to move into the mini-hearth whilst the queen still can't stand, or wait until the queen can? I am also beginning to see why they are a tad underdeveloped for year 3-their queen is one of the heaviest sleepers period! Anyways, what do you guys think I should do?

[Ants_Dakota]

You have the same problems as me? Half my nanitics always seem to die before the winter is over. 

[TennesseeAnts]

I'd dump them into the outworld.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

why's that? I don't ask to be rude, but for the reasoning behind it in case I come across this ever happens again...

[RushmoreAnts]

They can just be too slow or stubborn.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

ok, I'm just more worried about the queen in this case

[RushmoreAnts]

She’ll be perfectly fine. A fall won’t harm kill her, or any ant.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

I know but she is still laying down, albeit she is still responsive, but laying down

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

So it has come to my attention that if you use hydrogen peroxide to clean a formicarium you end up sterilizing the queen that goes in it...so I think it's time we say farewell to Selene...yeah, I made a mistake before I really knew what she was so let's bid her adieu 

[RushmoreAnts]

Oh, man. Sorry for your loss......... she was good for you, though.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

yea...remember not to use hydrogen peroxide to clean a formicarium because it will sterilize the queen

She's alive still but I figured she should live out her [presumably] last days in the place from where she came from-mother nature herself 

Edited by Da_NewAntOnTheBlock, April 2 2020 - 4:19 PM.

[ANTdrew]

Dang. Sorry, man. I don’t even know if Formica are worth the trouble anyways. Try to find a good ol’ Tetramorium queen that won’t give you any troubles and will pump out eggs like it’s 1999.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

I will try my hand at a Formica queen in the future most likely, however in a naturalistic setup. I don't want to keep Tetra for several reasons which are; 1. Their small size 2. They like to escape (I may be incorrect, however they enjoy new formicaria and thus will enjoy my home as a nest). 3. Their sting. Do I have to say any more? 4. If they escape and decide my room is a nice place to nest I will have to eradicate them and protect my feline friends called my cats, which would be terrible. Those are just a few, however I may be mistaken, and AD may be able to help me out but I don't really like to give chance well, really a chance at messing with my life. 

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

Thanks for your support tho guys, it means a lot to me as well, albeit I may not show my care, I defiantly need it and appreciate it in times like these-heck, we all do!

[RushmoreAnts]

I will try my hand at a Formica queen in the future most likely, however in a naturalistic setup. I don't want to keep Tetra for several reasons which are; 1. Their small size 2. They like to escape (I may be incorrect, however they enjoy new formicaria and thus will enjoy my home as a nest). 3. Their sting. Do I have to say any more? 4. If they escape and decide my room is a nice place to nest I will have to eradicate them and protect my feline friends called my cats, which would be terrible. Those are just a few, however I may be mistaken, and AD may be able to help me out but I don't really like to give chance well, really a chance at messing with my life.

I like both genera just as much.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

I'll have to see what ANTdrew has to say because he's kept more than a Tetra Trio, so he'll know what to do

[ANTdrew]

DNA, here’s my two cents on Tetras:
1) small ants are fun! They lay more eggs and develop so much faster than big ants, plus they forage more, dig more, etc. Magnifying glasses or macro lenses are pretty cheap.
2) Tetras actually suck at escaping. Their small size lets them slip through gaps, though, so you’d want THA formicariums made for tiny ants. They absolutely cannot climb fluon. Period. The only time I had escapees was in homemade crap set ups with gaps or other issues.
3) I’ve never been stung by a Tetra I’ve kept. Just don’t handle them in any way.
I say give it a shot. If you don’t like them after a few months, sell them to some AC noob on GAN for $150, lol.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

lol, I'll try it on for size then. LMAO sell it for an AC noob for $150

DNA, here’s my two cents on Tetras:
1) small ants are fun! They lay more eggs and develop so much faster than big ants, plus they forage more, dig more, etc. Magnifying glasses or macro lenses are pretty cheap.
2) Tetras actually suck at escaping. Their small size lets them slip through gaps, though, so you’d want THA formicariums made for tiny ants. They absolutely cannot climb fluon. Period. The only time I had escapees was in homemade crap set ups with gaps or other issues.
3) I’ve never been stung by a Tetra I’ve kept. Just don’t handle them in any way.
I say give it a shot. If you don’t like them after a few months, sell them to some AC noob on GAN for $150, lol.

You keep yours in a naturalistic setup if I'm not mistaken; how has that been?