49 replies to this topic

[NPLT]

You don't need to keep any feeders alive, so chirping is a non-issue. Pop the box/ bag right in the freezer as soon as they get home. Thaw as needed.

Also, don't feed Formica during the founding stage, only after she has workers.

Wait I thought founding stage refered to any point in colony development while they are below ~10-20 workers, ok, so, aside from me using wrong terminology, what I meant is: "is 10 D.hydei every day or two enough for a small colony?". 

[ANTdrew]

10 fruit flies is a good amount.

[NPLT]

10 fruit flies is a good amount.

Alright, thanks! Another question: I know all polish ants can be kept in house temperature, but will they enjoy higher temperatures? Also, how much will a 15 volt heating cable increase the temperature?

[ANTdrew]

15 watt cables increase the temperature about 20 degrees F higher than the surrounding area.

[NPLT]

15 watt cables increase the temperature about 20 degrees F higher than the surrounding area.

I'm bad at math, but I think I'll give up on the heating cable, since there's no 5 watt cable, and heating with a heating mat is a no go for the species I'll keep, and +6 Celcius I fear will heat the ants up too much...

Edited by NPLT, April 12 2021 - 9:47 AM.

[NPLT]

Cricket's are pretty annoying at night tbh.  Try telling your parents the pluses about dubias, like how they cannot climb smooth surfaces nor can they fly.  If they still say no, it's alright, since there's still plenty other kinds of feeders.  Also about the mealworms, the same thing is happening to me.  Someone told me they inbred too much, so I'll throw in another colony of them soon to widen the gene pool soon.  Maybe that'll work for you, too?

Dubias along with Crickets have been unfortunately unconditionally vetoed by my parents, ants will need to have a purely fruit fly diet, maybe I'll try to differentiate it by alternating between D.melanogaster and D.hydei, would that work?

 

 

Edit: Nevermind, mom just gave permission for crickets, yay!

Edited by NPLT, April 13 2021 - 10:20 AM.

[ANTdrew]

Crickets and fruit flies would be a great diet. You could supplement with some wild insects if you find safe places to collect.

[NPLT]

Crickets and fruit flies would be a great diet. You could supplement with some wild insects if you find safe places to collect.

Well, flies of quite large sizes and other invertebrates get stuck between my window and mosquito net quite regularly ( read: whenever the temperature is high enough for insects to come out ), I guess that's as good a place as any. I also have some aphids in a garden plant but I doubt I could make use of that.

[mantisgal]

Aphids are soft, aren't they? Couldn't hurt to try.

[Kaelwizard]

Aphids are soft, aren't they? Couldn't hurt to try.

They don’t eat aphids, they eat their excrement.

[mantisgal]

Sounds like a ladybird beetle keeping experiment is in store, then

[NPLT]

Aphids are soft, aren't they? Couldn't hurt to try.

Yeah but as Kael said ants don't eat aphids but farm them and I don't think there's a way to give the ants access to the plant without them escaping.

[mantisgal]

Huh. I thought for sure some ants ate the flesh of their "cows" - thank you for the clarification, as it has saved me trying to give my ants aphids without them living in a terrarium with live plants. How embarrassing!

[Kaelwizard]

Huh. I thought for sure some ants ate the flesh of their "cows" - thank you for the clarification, as it has saved me trying to give my ants aphids without them living in a terrarium with live plants. How embarrassing!

If you have heard of “honeydew” that is the sugary excrement of aphids that some insects including ants eat.

Edited by Kaelwizard, April 14 2021 - 12:29 PM.

[NickAnter]

Actually I believe some ants do eat their aphids to survive in the winter. I see no reason why an ant would not eat a crushed aphid, or one not producing anything.

[steelplant]

My Myrmica ate aphids when i gave her some last year, back before i could face killing the pet crickets. I just put the aphids in live.

Edited by steelplant, April 14 2021 - 2:24 PM.

[mantisgal]

If you have heard of “honeydew” that is the sugary excrement of aphids that some insects including ants eat.

I have spent many hours watching ants tend their herds on my late grandma's peonies

Actually I believe some ants do eat their aphids to survive in the winter. I see no reason why an ant would not eat a crushed aphid, or one not producing anything.

I figured they might, why waste the food? We eat chickens when they stop laying.

[JoeByron]

I think my biggest mistake was when I first started collecting ants, I got them confused with mice and kept killing them by squishing them into my little test tubes. 

 

Once I realized mice are not ants, things really took a turn for the better.

Edited by JoeByron, April 17 2021 - 9:31 PM.

[ANTdrew]

I think my biggest mistake was when I first started collecting ants, I got them confused with mice and kept killing them by squishing them into my little test tubes.

Once I realized mice are not ants, things really took a turn for the better.

Enough with the spam.

[Skwiggledork]

 

I think my biggest mistake was when I first started collecting ants, I got them confused with mice and kept killing them by squishing them into my little test tubes.

Once I realized mice are not ants, things really took a turn for the better.

Enough with the spam.

 

I thought this was one of the forums that required 50 posts before you could post in the marketplace and thought he was doing that.