Test tubes are considered to be good for raising queens. Small, portable, easily available.
I have had so many problems with water seeping into the pupae, mold, and leaking cotton that I have tried a few different things.
This was my first attempt I had boosted this Camponotus queen and the water kept saturating the pupae when they were in the test tube. I used two glass coasters with clay connecting them. Clay also isolated the water so it didn't mold so easily. The coasters worked much better, the water was never in contact with the pupae. Downside: water had to be added every week through a tube, mold did eventually form on the cotton. The emerging workers still can't forage and they are tough to feed in this contraption.
I recall seeing someone using a small food container holding just a waterer and a queen, and the queen raised her first workers without any tube or cover.
After lots of thought, I am trying another route. I want the queens and workers to be able to forage when they want and I don't want to involve cotton due to molding issues. I also want low maintenance. I just put these together, so we will see how they work long term.
Baseball display box (any smallish container should work) with two waterers, one with water and one with hummingbird nectar. I placed a piece of vinyl tubing against the side of the waterer with water. The waterer and tube had small blobs of clay holding them in place in case bumps moved them.
I drilled two holes in top. One is 1.25" and the other 1/4". The 1/4" is for ventilation and plugged with cotton, the 1.25" is for easy feeding access (especially important for the semi-claustral queens, or colonies with newly emerged workers). I covered the larger hole with clear plastic with masking tape holding the edges down.
The boxes are escape proof, so I can add 5-10 live fruit flies and let the queens/workers catch them as they choose, or as the flies die.
This Camponotus queen was found late this fall in a rotten log. No workers and thin, she had little hope. In this new set up, she has already drank at least 2 solid drops of nectar when I placed them just outside of her tube, so she may pull through after all.
I have 3 other late queens testing these setups for me as well. They all seem to have decided the tubing was a good place to settle down. I am sure next year I will find a rebel who will refuse to use the tubing.
