8 replies to this topic

[UtahAnts]

Hi all, 

I have a large colony of Pogonomyrmex that live next to me. I was thinking of catching a good amount this year, as last year I only found one queen of this genus last year and it got a way. Would feeding them early on when they start foraging increase the amount of males/queens that fly locally from the nest? Or were the alates born last year? And when I say feed them, I mean give them bugs/earthworms and dandelion seeds, which is what I always see them eating in the wild anyways.  The goal here is to have as many queens fly and then I catch a couple if they stay local.

-Thanks for any info

[ANTdrew]

Native ants need native plants to thrive. I would put your efforts toward creating and preserving native plant habitat in your area.

[UtahAnts]

Soo, don't feed the colony excessively? They live next to a cement curb, surrounded by grass, not a native plant in sight unfortunately. I know Pogonomyrmex are often given a bad rep for destroying surrounding wildlife, which is true, but some of the seeds collected also sprout. This is also the only local colony I have seen in my area and I happens to be next to me. Pogonomyrmex naturally live in south and west Utah's climates and in the summer you can see hundreds of tall pebble mounds throughout the prairie.

Ever since the Utah desert has been inhabited by pioneers, we have literally terraformed Utah valley from desert and prairie to a dense grassland with tons of trees using diverted water form the Colorado river and such. It feels better to us humans but we inadvertently destroyed a lot of the natural habitat. So maybe I will give re-colonizing this landscape, at least in my yard, with natural plants a shot. 

Edited by AntsUtah, January 25 2021 - 2:38 PM.

[Chickalo]

how smart time to plant weeds and sh*t to get some more of my favourite lasius brevi around here

[drtrmiller]

Yes, providing a colony with more food will likely affect the rate at which it can produce alates.  However, because alates are only produced/released seasonally, the timing will determine when the colony can convert those resources into reproductive potential.  You may need to feed them year round for a year or two to see results.

[ANTdrew]

Definitely give it a shot! You’ll start seeing wildlife you never even dreamed of, not just ants. I’d recommend looking for native plant societies in your area for recommendations. A lot of the species offered by Prairie Moon Nursery would be ideal for your area. You can check out my native plant journal for some ideas, as well, but I’m in a different eco-region.

[Chickalo]

ooh i wanna see some velvet ants

[steelplant]

I've always fed wild colonies sugars, just because I love ants. Since becoming an antkeeper, it seems a fair exchange for raiding their brood sometimes. I also like making nest materials available to them, like vermiculite, to get a better idea of what they like. I've not fed insects, but have a population explosion of crickets and mealworms so thanks for the idea antsutah.

[AntaholicAnonymous]

I only feed a wild colony when I take a couple workers for "research".
I think when you feed them a lot for a while and then stop they are gonna go through starvation and deaths because they can't support their numbers anymore.

So I like the long term native plantlife solution.