292 replies to this topic

[AntsGodzilla]

I made this "all in one" several months ago with Plaster of Paris, I like to call it "The Arch":

How hard was this to make?

[UtahAnts]

Not too hard, just used clay and poured the plaster over while holding the container at a 45 degree angle to get each hill. Then I went back and created the false bottom to secure everything.

[UtahAnts]

Here's a custom formicarium based on a Tar Heels Ants Mini hearth for a Myrmecocystus mexicanus colony. This nest has an uneven floor to help the larvae spin their cocoons. 2 exit ports, and a rear water/air port allows this to be expandable. The outworld has small agate pebbles near the nest entrance as they would have in the wild.

 

 

 

[ExponentMars]

Here's a smaller 3 tiered formicarium based on the original for a customer's growing Tetramorium colony.

 

I haven't been pointing it out on the past few formicariums, but I've started implementing sunken water towers. The ants and larvae seem to appreciate it when the water tower is partially covered, especially around the edges. This does limit the effectiveness of the old "light under the water tower trick", but I think the tradeoff is worth it, espcially in horizontal formicariums where there isn't really a need for an external light source.

 

Did you do multiple pours for this nest, or is it just one pour? If you did multiple pours, what's the trick to making the layers look like they're one pour? 

[cocdeshijie]

 

Here's a smaller 3 tiered formicarium based on the original for a customer's growing Tetramorium colony.

 

I haven't been pointing it out on the past few formicariums, but I've started implementing sunken water towers. The ants and larvae seem to appreciate it when the water tower is partially covered, especially around the edges. This does limit the effectiveness of the old "light under the water tower trick", but I think the tradeoff is worth it, espcially in horizontal formicariums where there isn't really a need for an external light source.

 

Did you do multiple pours for this nest, or is it just one pour? If you did multiple pours, what's the trick to making the layers look like they're one pour? 

 

 

You can clearly see the line for 2 pours.

[UtahAnts]

Yes 2 pours. Just pour the second layer soon after the first to get the best adhesion to the base layer. I also added a little wet sand to get the uneven texture.

[UtahAnts]

Here's a Harvester ant nest, similar to the previous red sand/clay horizontal nests on this thread. It features two water towers, 2 exit ports, one temperature probe port, 2 heating cable indents on the underside, a 4x4 inch nest space, and a large outworld with an insert to replicate the mound the ants would build naturally.

 

The outworld can be finished by using sand, rocks and other decor. I've noticed that Pogonomyrmex occidentalis colonies I've kept in the past chew or defecate on the decor, so covering the floor of the outworld with loose sand that can be cleaned, and if need be replaced entirely, is useful. Not to mention natural behaviors like this one may be more noticeable. 

 

 

 

 

[UtahAnts]

Here are some 4x4 inch nests, although the mold was about 5x4 inches, leading to thicker walls. Going from left to right below, the first nest was made for Camponotus vicinus, second is a harvester nest for P. rugosus. Third nest was meant for Tetramorium. And the fourth was designed with Pheidole in mind. Each nest features a water tower, light brown sand, and several tubing ports for nestmates and the outworld.

 

The larger nests are 5x7 inches. The adobe-chambered nest is for Pogonomyrmex rugosus. The chambers should create good humidity gradients for seed storage. The sand nest was designed for Camponotus vicinus, with large wide chambers. Each of these has two waters towers along with the outworld and nestmate tubing ports.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I also made some more dual view nests for honeypots. I actually never got around to taking pictures of the builds, but the formicarium were essentially smaller versions of the dual-view shown below, this time with embedded wonderstone. The glass sheets were simply microscope slides which functioned nicely. The colonies did well in these, and I sold them off to local hobbyists.

Here's a link to a short video of one of the colonies.

 

As a side note the material in the base layer broke off around one corner of the water tower on each formicarium. This was unintentional but I found it made checking on the water levels very easy - something I might try to replicate in the future.

 

 

 

 

 

EDIT: added a link to video of the nests

Edited by UtahAnts, Yesterday, 9:21 AM.

[1tsm3jack]

Are these for sale?

[UtahAnts]

@1tsm3jack These were made to order, so they've already been sold.

 

I've been in the middle of a move and so this will likely be my last post for a while. For a bit of fun I decided to list some of my favorite builds over the years.

 

Grout Nest

These were more of a prototype but they actually worked. I housed harvests and Crematogaster in each of these. Were I to do it again, I'd definitely add a dedicated humidity system.

 

 

 

Adobe coated chambered nest.

I've made a good amount of these but this first one lasted me for several years of use before I sold it! 

 

 

 

Mini-wood nests. 

Loads of fun to make for carpenter ants.

 

 

 

Tiered Formicariums

Here's a few of my favorites. These were all inspired by THA. Unfortunately I was never able to use one myself, but I hope they functioned well.

 

 

 

Split wood nest. 

I liked making wood nests, but this was the first that had a modular basing and connection system.

 

 

 

LED formicarium

I've done LEDs a few times, but this one just worked out nicely.

 

 

 

The Dome V3

One of my favorites, the 360 view of the repletes was pretty amazing. I still wish I had this colony, hope they are doing well.

 

 

 

Multi-view honeypot nest

This idea turned out way better than it should have. The lighting was amazing for contrast with the repletes and white sand. 

 

 

 

-------------------------------------------

Thanks for all your support over the years! I had some good fun and I learned a bunch along the way. I genuinely hope to see this forum thrive for many years to come! Until next time,

 

UA

Edited by UtahAnts, Yesterday, 10:01 AM.

[ANTdrew]

The third tiered formicarium is mine, and it still houses my Crematogaster mega colony, Queen Della.

Edited by ANTdrew, Yesterday, 10:18 AM.

[Izzy]

Glad to have one of the Dome formicarium as well! Such an iconic piece. Hopefully I'll have a big enough Myrmecocystus mimicus colony to move into it in the future.

 

Thanks for all the knowledge you've shared through the years regarding the ants in Utah and formicarium builds. It's been incredibly helpful! I'll definitely be coming back to this post often!

[AntsGodzilla]

Someone needs to pin this thread just because of how awesome it is!