157 replies to this topic

[Acutus]

It was just on what bird mutes were, (after that I didn't want to read more), but I suppose if there was a lab analysis of bird mutes compared to human urine, you would get a definitive answer... I'm just not the guy for this lol. Maybe you could conduct an experiment on this yourself... 

 

The whole point of including urine in a captive diet would be to mimic something included normally in a wild diet. I'm sure bird mutes are a more likely source in a wild diet than is Human Urine. Besides the birds eat healthier than most humans anyways.

Edited by Acutus, February 15 2020 - 8:05 PM.

[Rozema]

Hey, did not know this one existed.

I ordered a C thoracicus queen. She does not have any brood yet.
Can anyone advice me on how to start? I will keep her in a test tube undisturbed for a longer time above a heat mat.
She will be sent later this week. Should I feed her when she arrives or just place her above the mat?

[RushmoreAnts]

Most or all Camponotus species are fully claustral. You may feed her if you wish, but it is definitely not required.

[Ants4fun]

Hey, did not know this one existed.
I ordered a C thoracicus queen. She does not have any brood yet.
Can anyone advice me on how to start? I will keep her in a test tube undisturbed for a longer time above a heat mat.
She will be sent later this week. Should I feed her when she arrives or just place her above the mat?

If my mat, you mean heating mat, maybe just put the edge of the test tube. Test tubes can act as greenhouses and it can get very hot very quick for the queen.

[Rozema]

Hey, did not know this one existed.
I ordered a C thoracicus queen. She does not have any brood yet.
Can anyone advice me on how to start? I will keep her in a test tube undisturbed for a longer time above a heat mat.
She will be sent later this week. Should I feed her when she arrives or just place her above the mat?

If my mat, you mean heating mat, maybe just put the edge of the test tube. Test tubes can act as greenhouses and it can get very hot very quick for the queen.

Yes thank you. I always build a structure with my kids building blocks above a heating mat. In that way I can precisely adjust the heat by taking away building blocks or putting extra in.

[ANTdrew]

Sounds like you have a good plan. You can feed her a drop of honey water or nectar for an energy boost.

[Rozema]

How often should I check on her in the beginning?

[RushmoreAnts]

Once a week at most, once a month at least.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

Once a week at most, once a month at least.

The founding stage for Camponotus (and this is an average, so it may be a little different) is 1.5-2.5 months (2.5 months is if she's unheated). Some things that can help are heating (put a thermometer taped to the top of the inside of the test tube facing out, so you can get temperature readings, and make sure you're not giving her heat stroke. Another tip is give her privacy. While she's not as skitish as Formica, they do need their alone time. If you tape a thermometer it will block a good portion of light from the top, but the rest should be covered with red plastic for observation (ants eyes are bad enough where if you placed red plastic and expose it to light, they think it's dark, allowing them to be stress free, and you to observe them. These are a few good tips of the top of my head, send me a PM, and I'll see if I can come up with more. 

[RushmoreAnts]

Eh, I think they can still detect the red light somewhat, just not as much. Red light freaks Formica out, that's all I know.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

Eh, I think they can still detect the red light somewhat, just not as much. Red light freaks Formica out, that's all I know.

Formica are weird ants that's all I know

[Rozema]

She was alive when I just recieved het by mail and very relaxed. I gave her some sugar water and honey dew and put her away the following way.
She is above a heat mat. I used building blocks to get her at a height where it is 24-27 C. I put foil around it to keep her in the dark and soft cotton to absorb as much vibrations as possible.
I

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[Acutus]

Looks good! Good Luck!! 

[Rozema]

Thanks. Will it be a good idea to remove the sugar water and honeydew after a couple of hours?
I don’t want to disturb her for three weeks and am afraid of mould in the tube.

She looks well fed and healthy

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[Acutus]

Since feeding her at all is optional, something she wouldn't do in the wild anyway, I think its always better to Err on the side of caution. You're not hurting anything by removing it, mold could be a problem if you don't.

[Rozema]

Thanks. Will also wrap some red foil around the tube underneath the aluminium foil. So when I have to check on her she will not be from dark to light directly.

Better safe than sorry with this one. Really hope I will get het started

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

If you want to give her something to eat, you could give her honey as it doesn't mold as long as it's not in contact with any organic substances. Also, don't worry about her-she's Camponotus, they're all built though. Just give her some privacy (maybe check in every 2.5 weeks maybe?) and focus on your other hobbies in the meantime! She'll develop workers much faster since she's heated, but if you get too impatient you can PM me and I could try to entertain you for the founding stage lol. Just chill, and take it easy .

[ANTdrew]

I soak a bit of paper towel with a drop of nectar or honey water for all my queens. I leave the paper in through the whole founding process, and I’ve never had issues with mold. The whole mold phobia is kind of overblown, in my experience.

[Serafine]

 

It was just on what bird mutes were, (after that I didn't want to read more), but I suppose if there was a lab analysis of bird mutes compared to human urine, you would get a definitive answer... I'm just not the guy for this lol. Maybe you could conduct an experiment on this yourself... 

 

The whole point of including urine in a captive diet would be to mimic something included normally in a wild diet. I'm sure bird mutes are a more likely source in a wild diet than is Human Urine. Besides the birds eat healthier than most humans anyways.

 

Bird and reptile poop is on the food list of pretty much every known Camponotus species. There's actually even indicators that Camponotus ants do particularly well in areas with high bird or reptile populations (they harvest their poop mostly for nitrogen but possibly for other things as well, most vertrebrates are in fact fairly crappy when it comes to extracting all nutrients from the things they eat).

Edited by Serafine, February 18 2020 - 1:19 PM.

[Rozema]

If you want to give her something to eat, you could give her honey as it doesn't mold as long as it's not in contact with any organic substances. Also, don't worry about her-she's Camponotus, they're all built though. Just give her some privacy (maybe check in every 2.5 weeks maybe?) and focus on your other hobbies in the meantime! She'll develop workers much faster since she's heated, but if you get too impatient you can PM me and I could try to entertain you for the founding stage lol. Just chill, and take it easy .

Hahaha thank you. Inwill leave her alone and focus on my new P dives setup I created this week. Can watch them for hours.
But I will remember your offer 😄