49 replies to this topic

[rptraut]

Welcome to my Journal

 

I hope you enjoy and learn from my Journal entries.   I welcome all comments and questions, so I can learn too.   In this journal I intend to continue previous journals in one place where I can update the status of my colonies and cover topics of interest to me and hopefully to you.   

 

Status of my Afflicted Colonies

 

Last year (2023) many of my colonies became afflicted with a disease that wiped out most of the workers and reduced the affected colonies to a queen, brood and a few nurse ants.   Most of the colonies simply dwindled and died or simply disappeared.    All of my small Myrmica colonies died out and I lost a few Lasius americanus colonies as well.   

 

Since then, I've implemented a more rigorous sanitation program with instrument cleaning using 99% isopropyl alcohol between the feeding of each colony.   Different instruments are used for feeding and waste removal.   I isolated and destroyed two colonies this season that seemed to be affected.   On the whole, most of my colonies are doing very well.  

 

My Camponotus pennsylvanicus Colonies

 

None of these colonies seemed to be affected by disease last year and have come through diapause, spring and early summer very well.   Most are incubating a large batch of cocoons at the moment.    

 

I think there's something to be learned from the Greenhouse colony that suffered an extreme population decrease last spring.    I believe the reason for their decline was because of something very much like freezer burn.    I overwintered them in a garage where it seldom goes above freezing in the winter.   Camponotus can withstand freezing temperatures so I thought they would be all right.    What I didn't realize was that, even though I made sure there was always snow or ice in their nest, the loss of moisture was just too much for some of them in the open nesting chamber they were housed in.    In nature, they overwinter packed into small chambers where their moisture is absorbed by the surrounding wood and they don't dry excessively.   I expect the ants on the outside of their winter huddle suffered the most, but luckily the queen and some workers in the middle survived and are slowly bouncing back from this set back.   They are now housed in an old piece of wood and are happily making chambers and brood.   

 

The Chicken Coop colony has continued to be my most productive Camponotus colony.   

 

My other three colonies are doing very well, increasing in size.   My dilemma now is, how big do I want these colonies to get?   I want to keep some of them small enough to be able to take them for demonstrations, so population control has become necessary.   With two of the colonies, I've waited until there's a lot of ants in the outworld hanging out, doing nothing, or more likely, climbing walls and attempting escape.   On two separate occasions I removed 60 ants each time from one colony and the difference in their behavior was dramatic.   No more climbing, hanging out, or escape attempts.   All the ants left were busy again with the business of raising brood.   The "Chicken Coop" colony will be going on tour to the Bee Club I belong to with a couple of other colonies in a couple of weeks, so I want to keep them down to a manageable size.    

 

Tetramorium immigrans Colonies

 

This is the fourth season that I've kept two of these colonies, and they continue to entertain me.   Both colonies have suffered some population drops, mostly due to escapes when I was away on vacation.    I realized from this, that these colonies can suffer significant losses and still bounce back.   

 

 

I've removed workers from both these colonies this year, keeping them to a manageable size for the formicarium they're housed in.   Always active, they eat almost anything, and create very few problems for me.   Mostly a pleasure to keep.  I also have a founding colony that seems to be struggling a little.   

 

Brachymyrmex depilis Colony

 

I can't tell you how delighted I am to be able to tell you that I finally feel confident enough to say that I have a colony of Brachymyrmex depilis ants!!   It's taken four queens and three years of seeing very few if any ants to finally have one colony that now regularly feed from protein that I give them and appear to be raising brood and increasing.   These queens were all started in natural setups, and I've never seen them since.   For months, and years, I faithfully fed and watered them almost every day until one by one they failed, and I was left with this one colony that this spring and summer have been an absolute delight.   If you're not familiar with these ants, they are extremely small, light colored, and very shy and reclusive.   I use a 3.5x magnifying glass to watch them take food from their tray or scour out the insides of a fly carcass.   I've always liked small things, but these guys are amazing.  

 

Lasius neoniger Colony

 

I purchased two Lasius niger queens with workers and one Lasius neoniger  queen with workers this spring.   

 

I put one of the niger queens and workers in a modest sized formicarium and the other queen and workers were put into a relatively small cube.   I should say that both colonies moved in of their own accord after being connected while in the test tube.   For some inexplicable reason, both colonies seemed to lose workers right from the start and they never seemed to make the transition from test tube to formicarium. 

 

 

 

The neoniger queen and workers on the other hand never looked back.   I connected them to a similar setup as the niger queens, but instead of moving completely out of the test tube, they set up a founding type chamber in the connector I had used for the test tube.  I was able to remove the test tube and they stayed in the connector where they grew in numbers and then moved into the test tubes that make up the nesting chambers in this setup.  So far they're doing great and I hope their new home will be big enough to last the season.   

 

 

Crematogaster Colonies

 

I purchased two Crematogaster queens this spring and both arrived with eggs and larvae.   The second queen arrived a considerable time after the first, so has gotten off to a slower start.   

 

 

 

Queen 1 very quickly raised four nanitics and I connected them to the formicarium pictured above.   I think you can just see the queen on the left side of the bottom test tube.  They started out nesting on the hydration sponge.   They seem to like all foods I have given them and they're very attentive to their brood.   

 

Queen 2 had a slower start as her first two nanitics didn't seem to eclose properly.   Eventually the queen destroyed them, so I put my hopes in the brood that was still left, covered the test tube, and left them in the dark for two weeks, just in case my disturbing them was the cause of the eclosing problem.    To my great delight, two spunky little nanitics greeted me when I next checked their tube.   I'm feeding them in the test tube right now, but I can see that they'll need a feeding chamber at least before too long.  

 

 

I hope you enjoyed this inaugural entry in my Journal.   Questions and comments are welcome.   

RPT

 

 

 

 

 

[AntsTx]

Welcome to my Journal

 

I hope you enjoy and learn from my Journal entries.   I welcome all comments and questions, so I can learn too.   In this journal I intend to continue previous journals in one place where I can update the status of my colonies and cover topics of interest to me and hopefully to you.   

 

Status of my Afflicted Colonies

 

Last year (2023) many of my colonies became afflicted with a disease that wiped out most of the workers and reduced the affected colonies to a queen, brood and a few nurse ants.   Most of the colonies simply dwindled and died or simply disappeared.    All of my small Myrmica colonies died out and I lost a few Lasius americanus colonies as well.   

 

Since then, I've implemented a more rigorous sanitation program with instrument cleaning using 99% isopropyl alcohol between the feeding of each colony.   Different instruments are used for feeding and waste removal.   I isolated and destroyed two colonies this season that seemed to be affected.   On the whole, most of my colonies are doing very well.  

 

My Camponotus pennsylvanicus Colonies

 

None of these colonies seemed to be affected by disease last year and have come through diapause, spring and early summer very well.   Most are incubating a large batch of cocoons at the moment.    

 

I think there's something to be learned from the Greenhouse colony that suffered an extreme population decrease last spring.    I believe the reason for their decline was because of something very much like freezer burn.    I overwintered them in a garage where it seldom goes above freezing in the winter.   Camponotus can withstand freezing temperatures so I thought they would be all right.    What I didn't realize was that, even though I made sure there was always snow or ice in their nest, the loss of moisture was just too much for some of them in the open nesting chamber they were housed in.    In nature, they overwinter packed into small chambers where their moisture is absorbed by the surrounding wood and they don't dry excessively.   I expect the ants on the outside of their winter huddle suffered the most, but luckily the queen and some workers in the middle survived and are slowly bouncing back from this set back.   They are now housed in an old piece of wood and are happily making chambers and brood.   

 

IMG_8038.JPG

The Chicken Coop colony has continued to be my most productive Camponotus colony.   

 

My other three colonies are doing very well, increasing in size.   My dilemma now is, how big do I want these colonies to get?   I want to keep some of them small enough to be able to take them for demonstrations, so population control has become necessary.   With two of the colonies, I've waited until there's a lot of ants in the outworld hanging out, doing nothing, or more likely, climbing walls and attempting escape.   On two separate occasions I removed 60 ants each time from one colony and the difference in their behavior was dramatic.   No more climbing, hanging out, or escape attempts.   All the ants left were busy again with the business of raising brood.   The "Chicken Coop" colony will be going on tour to the Bee Club I belong to with a couple of other colonies in a couple of weeks, so I want to keep them down to a manageable size.    

 

Tetramorium immigrans Colonies

 

This is the fourth season that I've kept two of these colonies, and they continue to entertain me.   Both colonies have suffered some population drops, mostly due to escapes when I was away on vacation.    I realized from this, that these colonies can suffer significant losses and still bounce back.   

 

IMG_7984.JPG

 

I've removed workers from both these colonies this year, keeping them to a manageable size for the formicarium they're housed in.   Always active, they eat almost anything, and create very few problems for me.   Mostly a pleasure to keep.  I also have a founding colony that seems to be struggling a little.   

 

Brachymyrmex depilis Colony

 

I can't tell you how delighted I am to be able to tell you that I finally feel confident enough to say that I have a colony of Brachymyrmex depilis ants!!   It's taken four queens and three years of seeing very few if any ants to finally have one colony that now regularly feed from protein that I give them and appear to be raising brood and increasing.   These queens were all started in natural setups, and I've never seen them since.   For months, and years, I faithfully fed and watered them almost every day until one by one they failed, and I was left with this one colony that this spring and summer have been an absolute delight.   If you're not familiar with these ants, they are extremely small, light colored, and very shy and reclusive.   I use a 3.5x magnifying glass to watch them take food from their tray or scour out the insides of a fly carcass.   I've always liked small things, but these guys are amazing.  

 

Lasius neoniger Colony

 

I purchased two Lasius niger queens with workers and one Lasius neoniger  queen with workers this spring.   

 

I put one of the niger queens and workers in a modest sized formicarium and the other queen and workers were put into a relatively small cube.   I should say that both colonies moved in of their own accord after being connected while in the test tube.   For some inexplicable reason, both colonies seemed to lose workers right from the start and they never seemed to make the transition from test tube to formicarium. 

 

 

IMG_8090.JPG

 

The neoniger queen and workers on the other hand never looked back.   I connected them to a similar setup as the niger queens, but instead of moving completely out of the test tube, they set up a founding type chamber in the connector I had used for the test tube.  I was able to remove the test tube and they stayed in the connector where they grew in numbers and then moved into the test tubes that make up the nesting chambers in this setup.  So far they're doing great and I hope their new home will be big enough to last the season.   

 

 

Crematogaster Colonies

 

I purchased two Crematogaster queens this spring and both arrived with eggs and larvae.   The second queen arrived a considerable time after the first, so has gotten off to a slower start.   

 

 

IMG_8087.JPG

 

Queen 1 very quickly raised four nanitics and I connected them to the formicarium pictured above.   I think you can just see the queen on the left side of the bottom test tube.  They started out nesting on the hydration sponge.   They seem to like all foods I have given them and they're very attentive to their brood.   

 

Queen 2 had a slower start as her first two nanitics didn't seem to eclose properly.   Eventually the queen destroyed them, so I put my hopes in the brood that was still left, covered the test tube, and left them in the dark for two weeks, just in case my disturbing them was the cause of the eclosing problem.    To my great delight, two spunky little nanitics greeted me when I next checked their tube.   I'm feeding them in the test tube right now, but I can see that they'll need a feeding chamber at least before too long.  

 

 

I hope you enjoyed this inaugural entry in my Journal.   Questions and comments are welcome.   

RPT

 

 

 

 

Cool journal man!

[ANTdrew]

Excellent first post. I’m glad to see your perseverance paying off. I find it interesting that North American keepers of Lasius niger rarely have the success that so many European keepers have. I wonder if they truly are the same species after all.

[rptraut]

The Camponotus Colony that Should Never Have Existed

 

I hope you don't mind if I tell the odd story from my life that will hopefully point out some aspect of life that you might find interesting

 

When I was ten, we moved into a house that was fairly small, but it had a large addition on the back.   A bedroom and two-piece bathroom was part of that addition.   There was a full basement under the old part of the house, and crawl space under the addition.    From the time we moved in, the odd  Camponotus ant (we called them carpenter ants back then) was found running around, once in a while, in the bedroom.   It was bad enough that my parents called an exterminator.   The crawlspace under the addition got a good spray but the ant problem continued.   

 

One quiet afternoon in the bedroom, I heard a very faint scratching noise.   I put my ear to the wall, followed the noise and realized it was coming from the bathroom's sliding door.   It sounded alive inside!   When my father got home the door was quickly removed and taken outside.   In the bottom of the door there was a small square hole.   My father emptied a can of insect killer into it and the scratching noises stopped.   The door was made from two pieces of thin veneer for the sides of the door with wood pieces for the outside edges.   Thin pieces of wood spanned the center of the door to stiffen it, each one had the same small hole as the bottom of the door.   In a couple of days the door was rained on, the veneer peeled, so I opened up the ruined door.    At least half of the inside of that door was black with ants.    They had used the space between the dividers as separate chambers and had survived quite nicely, despite conditions that certainly weren't ideal - according to the book. 

 

When I thought about it, I realized how amazing it was that the colony had survived at all.   When the mated queen entered that door to found the colony, she certainly didn't have a small founding chamber.   No vibrations?  - the nest was disturbed at least three or four times a day when the washroom was used, and the door was slid back and forth into its' wall slot.   We're warned about too much nest space, these ants had a huge space available right from the start.   Hydration? -the nest must have been very dry because the door ran back into a wall slot when open and couldn't have gotten much humidity from the bathroom.   When the door was in the wall, they must have found a way to access the outdoors through the crawl space for things like water and food, but these ants went through diapause at normal room temperatures.   It seems they were able to survive quite nicely despite breaking every rule in the book.  No ventilation, that's another one.   It could be one of the reasons why Camponotus is such a great ant for beginners.   They really don't have any strict requirements: they need drinking water....and food.      

 

When I read about the strict requirements that some ants need to survive, I remember this colony.    Despite breaking all the usual rules, this Camponotus colony still survived quite nicely in conditions where they really should never have existed.

RPT

[rptraut]

Tour of My Workshop/Ant Room

 

I turned the attached garage on our house into a workshop after I built a new garage, half of which is actually my workshop for larger tools and woodworking equipment.    One of the first improvements I made to the converted garage was to install a large window in the south facing wall.    A large shade tree ensures that the window is shaded in summer, although it can be quite sunny all winter and into late spring before the tree comes out in leaf.   

 

 

 

 

During the summer, the dappled shade allows me to cover parts of each formicarium to keep that section cool while the unshaded part is warmed by the intermittent sunshine.    This gives the ants a choice of cool and moist or warm and dry sections of the nest.    Queen and brood generally occupy the cooler sections while larger larvae and pupae are brought to the warmer part to mature.   I keep heat loving ants in the window, Tetramorium and Tapinoma ants love the heat for their pupae and will move them to warmer parts of the nest during the day, returning them to the nest at night.    Regular hydration, every two or three days is critical for these colonies as they dry faster during sunny days.  I use a small fan to circulate air around the window which can get quite a bit warmer than the rest of the room.   I monitor temperatures and humidities on the shelf and the bench area.  

 

 

 

 

On the opposite wall I keep smaller and founding colonies and most of my Camponotus ants.    I can warm colonies that need it with a heat mat, but most of these colonies prefer moderated outdoor temperatures which is basically what they get as the workshop isn't air conditioned, so the temperature fluctuates with outdoor temperatures, moderated to a degree by the building.

 

The combination of workshop and ant room is a convenient way for me to keep everything in one place, and the best thing about it; my wife doesn't consider it part of the house, so I'm allowed to keep my ants there.   However, it is attached to the house, so I have to maintain a no escape, no return policy.   I try to construct my formicaria to be escape proof, any escapees are removed.

 

Now you know where I keep my ants, succeeding posts will show you how I keep my ants and how they're developing.

RPT

 

 

 

 

 

[rptraut]

Camponotus Colony Update

 

 

 

The Greenhouse colony suffered significant worker losses during diapause two years ago and are still recovering.    The colony is approximately seven years old, but their population is probably that of a four-year old colony.    They now live in this piece of old nest; they've made lots of excavations and are coming back slowly in numbers.

 

 

 

 

I have three Camponotus colonies in their fourth season, the Chicken Coop colony above has always outperformed the others.   The first season the queen produced seven nanitics, while all the others produced six.   This year I removed 120 ants to keep this colony to a size that they will still be comfortable in this setup.   I take them for demonstrations as they are easily transportable.  

 

 

 

 

By culling some of the population, I'm able to keep this colony small enough to fit their housing, yet big enough to impress for demonstrations.

 

 

 

 

The Castle colony above has grown well and are finally treating the castle, which has wood chips and tubes inside, as their outworld and nest.   I enjoy watching ants go in and out the many entrances to the castle.   The founding chamber to the right, with the blackout screen pulled back, is attached to a brood chamber in the center.   Feeding tubes are mounted to the left of the castle.   They provide water and sugar/water.

 

 

 

 

The Driftwood Colony, although they've been the slowest growing colony, have finally hit their stride and have grown nicely this season.    To the right is the founding chamber which contains the queen, eggs, and small larvae while larger larvae and cocoons are found in the brood chamber at rear left.   Tubes connect to their driftwood outworld on the left and their feeding chamber on the right.   The feeding chamber provides water, sugar/water and the feeding port mounted on the top, means I can undo the feeding port without fear of ants escaping because they can't climb upside down on the oiled lid.

 

 

 

 

These two colonies are in their third season, the workers are so packed into the chambers, it's impossible to tell how many there are, but each now has a pile of eggs, getting ready for diapause.    I don't have any colonies in their second season, I lost them all in an overheating accident.    I have two queens in founding chambers in natural setups, now I anxiously await the arrival of nanitics.

 

I hope you've enjoyed this update; I'd like to explain one of my requests for you.   I've been a teacher, and I still do many presentations about my bonsai trees and lately, a few more about my ants.   I'm used to getting feedback from students and my audiences immediately, so writing on a forum like this seems rather impersonal to me.   But I still need feedback from you.   One of the ways you can show me that you appreciate the time it takes to write these posts, and that it's worth my time to do it, is to like (hit the like button) for my posts.   You can't imagine how important it is to me to know that you enjoy and appreciate these posts.   Please let me know.

RPT

 

 

 

[AntsGodzilla]

 

Camponotus Colony Update

 

 

IMG_8102.JPG

 

The Greenhouse colony suffered significant worker losses during diapause two years ago and are still recovering.    The colony is approximately seven years old, but their population is probably that of a four-year old colony.    They now live in this piece of old nest; they've made lots of excavations and are coming back slowly in numbers.

 

 

 

IMG_8124.JPG

 

I have three Camponotus colonies in their fourth season, the Chicken Coop colony above has always outperformed the others.   The first season the queen produced seven nanitics, while all the others produced six.   This year I removed 120 ants to keep this colony to a size that they will still be comfortable in this setup.   I take them for demonstrations as they are easily transportable.  

 

 

 

IMG_8140.JPG

 

By culling some of the population, I'm able to keep this colony small enough to fit their housing, yet big enough to impress for demonstrations.

 

 

 

IMG_8126.JPG

 

The Castle colony above has grown well and are finally treating the castle, which has wood chips and tubes inside, as their outworld and nest.   I enjoy watching ants go in and out the many entrances to the castle.   The founding chamber to the right, with the blackout screen pulled back, is attached to a brood chamber in the center.   Feeding tubes are mounted to the left of the castle.   They provide water and sugar/water.

 

 

 

IMG_8123.JPG

 

The Driftwood Colony, although they've been the slowest growing colony, have finally hit their stride and have grown nicely this season.    To the right is the founding chamber which contains the queen, eggs, and small larvae while larger larvae and cocoons are found in the brood chamber at rear left.   Tubes connect to their driftwood outworld on the left and their feeding chamber on the right.   The feeding chamber provides water, sugar/water and the feeding port mounted on the top, means I can undo the feeding port without fear of ants escaping because they can't climb upside down on the oiled lid.

 

 

 

IMG_8122.JPG

 

These two colonies are in their third season, the workers are so packed into the chambers, it's impossible to tell how many there are, but each now has a pile of eggs, getting ready for diapause.    I don't have any colonies in their second season, I lost them all in an overheating accident.    I have two queens in founding chambers in natural setups, now I anxiously await the arrival of nanitics.

 

I hope you've enjoyed this update; I'd like to explain one of my requests for you.   I've been a teacher, and I still do many presentations about my bonsai trees and lately, a few more about my ants.   I'm used to getting feedback from students and my audiences immediately, so writing on a forum like this seems rather impersonal to me.   But I still need feedback from you.   One of the ways you can show me that you appreciate the time it takes to write these posts, and that it's worth my time to do it, is to like (hit the like button) for my posts.   You can't imagine how important it is to me to know that you enjoy and appreciate these posts.   Please let me know.

RPT

 

Nice diy setups!

[rptraut]

The Variability of Queens

 

I want to use this journal to discuss some of the observations I've made about ants and ant keeping.

 

Someone once asked why I keep so many colonies of the same kind of ants.   The reason is so I'm able to make comparisons and I've observed there can be a wide variation in queens "mothering ability" and their offspring's ability to thrive as a colony.   

 

The four-year-old Camponotus colonies shown above, The Chicken Coop Colony, The Castle Colony, and the Driftwood Colony, are all from queens that came to me in 2021.   I say came to me because after many fruitless trips looking for queens, I decided I would let them come to me, and in 2021 four queens presented themselves to me.   Yes, there were four and my queen comparison begins.   Queen #1 had difficulties right from the start.   She raised fewer nanitics (5), and the ones she did raise were not as supportive as they could be of their queen and larvae, and they had poor survival skills.   For example, some nanitics seem to be able to drown in the first puddle they come to, or get lost in an outworld, or they wander aimlessly without getting anything done while only one or two ants do all the food gathering.   Whether these skills are instinctual or inherited, it seems there can be differences and these make a difference in the development of a colony.    Queen #1 died during her first diapause.

 

Queen #3 on the other hand, raised seven nanitics that excelled at foraging, recruiting, and gathering and transporting food to the colony.   They tended the queen and larvae well, helped new workers eclose, and kept a tidy nest.   These are the sort of characteristics I believe are important for a colony to thrive; the better workers are at these tasks, the more successful a colony is likely to be.   Differences can be seen between species because of these factors.   Both Queens 2 and 4 raised six nanitics, but Queen #2 laid more eggs in her second season, and got off to a faster start.   And that's probably the most important reason for the variation of queens is their ability to lay eggs.   

 

There are many factors that go into egg production I'm sure, but the fact is that some queens are just capable and willing to lay more eggs than other queens.   The more eggs a queen lays, the faster a colony grows.    A nervous or disturbed queen may not be as willing to lay eggs, despite being quite capable to do so, while the relaxed or calm queen carries right on.   There are many reasons for these differences.

 

It can be frustrating when you first start ant keeping if your first and second queens fail, have faith, you'll eventually get that queen with the right combination to be successful.    As well as patience, ant keeping requires perseverance in some cases.   It took me four queens to get one Brachymyrmex colony!  Maybe that's good, I don't know, I got three colonies from four Camponotus queens.   Not every queen will be successful, in nature most aren't.   Rejoice when you get that perfect queen, they're not that common.   

RPT

[OwlThatLikesAnts]

wow RPT. your diy is amazing and the amount of ants you are keeping is astonishing! Keep up the good work because I feel like I will struggle with 5 colonies

[AntsGodzilla]

The Variability of Queens

 

I want to use this journal to discuss some of the observations I've made about ants and ant keeping.

 

Someone once asked why I keep so many colonies of the same kind of ants.   The reason is so I'm able to make comparisons and I've observed there can be a wide variation in queens "mothering ability" and their offspring's ability to thrive as a colony.   

 

The four-year-old Camponotus colonies shown above, The Chicken Coop Colony, The Castle Colony, and the Driftwood Colony, are all from queens that came to me in 2021.   I say came to me because after many fruitless trips looking for queens, I decided I would let them come to me, and in 2021 four queens presented themselves to me.   Yes, there were four and my queen comparison begins.   Queen #1 had difficulties right from the start.   She raised fewer nanitics (5), and the ones she did raise were not as supportive as they could be of their queen and larvae, and they had poor survival skills.   For example, some nanitics seem to be able to drown in the first puddle they come to, or get lost in an outworld, or they wander aimlessly without getting anything done while only one or two ants do all the food gathering.   Whether these skills are instinctual or inherited, it seems there can be differences and these make a difference in the development of a colony.    Queen #1 died during her first diapause.

 

Queen #3 on the other hand, raised seven nanitics that excelled at foraging, recruiting, and gathering and transporting food to the colony.   They tended the queen and larvae well, helped new workers eclose, and kept a tidy nest.   These are the sort of characteristics I believe are important for a colony to thrive; the better workers are at these tasks, the more successful a colony is likely to be.   Differences can be seen between species because of these factors.   Both Queens 2 and 4 raised six nanitics, but Queen #2 laid more eggs in her second season, and got off to a faster start.   And that's probably the most important reason for the variation of queens is their ability to lay eggs.   

 

There are many factors that go into egg production I'm sure, but the fact is that some queens are just capable and willing to lay more eggs than other queens.   The more eggs a queen lays, the faster a colony grows.    A nervous or disturbed queen may not be as willing to lay eggs, despite being quite capable to do so, while the relaxed or calm queen carries right on.   There are many reasons for these differences.

 

It can be frustrating when you first start ant keeping if your first and second queens fail, have faith, you'll eventually get that queen with the right combination to be successful.    As well as patience, ant keeping requires perseverance in some cases.   It took me four queens to get one Brachymyrmex colony!  Maybe that's good, I don't know, I got three colonies from four Camponotus queens.   Not every queen will be successful, in nature most aren't.   Rejoice when you get that perfect queen, they're not that common.   

RPT

yeah I know the disapointment of unsuccessful queens. Good work on keeping so many alive!

[rptraut]

Lasius neoniger Colony

 

I want to show you some video of my Lasius neoniger colony as they are the type of ants that I've always wanted to keep, even as a kid.   Part of the reason for their success is the amazing ability and willingness of the queen to lay massive numbers of eggs, more than many queens I've had.    She's one of the reasons I wrote about the variability of queens, she's the reason this colony is succeeding.    

 

Lasius neoniger colony feeding (youtube.com)

 

This video shows some workers eating sugar/water from a saturated piece of sponge.    They also have a piece of sponge with water and a piece of canned dog food on their feeding tray.   Nothing too exciting perhaps, but I'm thrilled with their progress this season.

 

I'll tell you more about this colony and the two founding L. neoniger colonies I'm keeping in the future.

RPT

[Mushu]

The Variability of Queens

 

I want to use this journal to discuss some of the observations I've made about ants and ant keeping.

 

Someone once asked why I keep so many colonies of the same kind of ants.   The reason is so I'm able to make comparisons and I've observed there can be a wide variation in queens "mothering ability" and their offspring's ability to thrive as a colony.   

 

The four-year-old Camponotus colonies shown above, The Chicken Coop Colony, The Castle Colony, and the Driftwood Colony, are all from queens that came to me in 2021.   I say came to me because after many fruitless trips looking for queens, I decided I would let them come to me, and in 2021 four queens presented themselves to me.   Yes, there were four and my queen comparison begins.   Queen #1 had difficulties right from the start.   She raised fewer nanitics (5), and the ones she did raise were not as supportive as they could be of their queen and larvae, and they had poor survival skills.   For example, some nanitics seem to be able to drown in the first puddle they come to, or get lost in an outworld, or they wander aimlessly without getting anything done while only one or two ants do all the food gathering.   Whether these skills are instinctual or inherited, it seems there can be differences and these make a difference in the development of a colony.    Queen #1 died during her first diapause.

 

Queen #3 on the other hand, raised seven nanitics that excelled at foraging, recruiting, and gathering and transporting food to the colony.   They tended the queen and larvae well, helped new workers eclose, and kept a tidy nest.   These are the sort of characteristics I believe are important for a colony to thrive; the better workers are at these tasks, the more successful a colony is likely to be.   Differences can be seen between species because of these factors.   Both Queens 2 and 4 raised six nanitics, but Queen #2 laid more eggs in her second season, and got off to a faster start.   And that's probably the most important reason for the variation of queens is their ability to lay eggs.   

 

There are many factors that go into egg production I'm sure, but the fact is that some queens are just capable and willing to lay more eggs than other queens.   The more eggs a queen lays, the faster a colony grows.    A nervous or disturbed queen may not be as willing to lay eggs, despite being quite capable to do so, while the relaxed or calm queen carries right on.   There are many reasons for these differences.

 

It can be frustrating when you first start ant keeping if your first and second queens fail, have faith, you'll eventually get that queen with the right combination to be successful.    As well as patience, ant keeping requires perseverance in some cases.   It took me four queens to get one Brachymyrmex colony!  Maybe that's good, I don't know, I got three colonies from four Camponotus queens.   Not every queen will be successful, in nature most aren't.   Rejoice when you get that perfect queen, they're not that common.   

RPT

 

Totally agree with your observations. I think the first niantics are very important. My founding Myrmecocystus placodops 01 queen was reactive, she took nectar both times I fed her and did not really panic too much. The nanitics were foraging from day 1 and still going strong. This colony is not as picky as my other M. Placodops colony, takes everything I feed them and is just exploding.  I see why perhaps Placodops 01 is larger, genetics, both physically and behavioral wise.

Edited by Mushu, September 6 2024 - 1:42 AM.

[rptraut]

My Crematogaster Experience 

 

I've made several attempts to acquire a Crematogaster colony.   Two years ago in the fall, I found two queens near my daughter's pool in the city, they have a different spectrum of ants than I do in the country.   I put them in test tube setups, but both died during diapause.   I have yet to see these ants in my area, so I've had to buy the rest of the queens and workers since then.   Last fall I bought two queens in test tubes, one of them died shortly after receiving it, the other died during diapause.   So, I bought two more queens late this spring.    One of them got off to a good start, but the other was a dud and had to be replaced, so had a later start.   I've written about these queens, one produced four nanitics, the second one two nanitics.   They were connected to nests and moved in very quickly, but both queens have since died.   The queen with four nanitics was put into the setup shown above in a previous post.   I connected the second queen with two nanitics to a small feeding cube, very basic.   If you look at the photo of the setup above in the previous post, you'll notice some condensation.    I found the first queen dead, maybe drowned, in water in a tube I meant for them to nest in.   I can't understand this because there were lots of dry places to nest.   I found the second queen dead on top of some moss.   I also lost some nanitics that got caught in the heavy mineral oil I was using as a barrier.   The barrier wasn't even necessary.  

 

 

Enthusiastic feeding of protein is a good sign the queen is laying eggs, and the colony is raising brood.   

 

 

I wanted to get a colony going before diapause, so I purchased a queen and about 20 workers.   I connected them to the same formicarium after I'd taken it apart, dried, and reassembled it.   I'm not quite ready to declare this colony successful, but they're working hard for their numbers and taking lots of protein, so looking good.   It's a natural enough setup that monitoring their progress by viewing ants and brood in the nest is rather difficult.    A small number of ants can live in a very small area.   I monitor their progress by observing them at the feeding tray.   I like to see their numbers increase and that they take protein and sugar/water eagerly.    This colony looks promising.    

 

I've seen photos and videos of queens with workers and piles of larvae and eggs, but even my two queens that raised four and two nanitics, only had four or five more larvae in a pile and no sign of any eggs at all.    Perhaps there's variability in Crematogaster queens as well.   This seems to be just another example of how an ant keeper sometimes has to have perseverance as well as patience.   

RPT

[rptraut]

My Tapinoma Sessile Colonies

 

I've kept three Tapinoma Sessile colonies for four seasons, and I have one colony I acquired this summer.    I was forced to destroy one colony last year because of a mite infestation.   One of the things I like about these ants is that they're so easy to acquire.    All of them were full colonies with queens and brood and I found them in places like hollow tomato and rhubarb stems from the year before, an aluminum tent pole and I lured a colony into an Uncle Milton ant farm.  The colony I got this summer moved into a formicarium I left for them in a warm place under my picnic table.   

 

Although these ants can be a significant pest in the home, in a formicarium I find them to be active, good eaters that tend brood well and stay at a population that fits their housing.  They have multiple queens, so larvae feeding is pretty continuous throughout the season with no slow times when a batch of brood is in the pupal stage.  They readily transport pupae to warmer areas of the nest; in my workshop they're all in the window where they take advantage of the sunshine.    I usually shade part of the nest, so they have a warm area and a cooler area.   I use heavy mineral oil as a barrier, it's so effective that I keep some of them in open top formicaria.   

 

 

 

 

This is the Pet Rock colony.    A heavy rock is the heart of this formicarium.   It's heated by the sun and keeps the colony warm during the night.   The rock actually helps to keep the colony from getting too warm in the sun because it absorbs heat and moderates temperature fluctuations.  I have numerous test tubes of various sizes buried within the moss and between the rock and the acrylic walls where the ants raise brood, and queens can find a secluded place to lay and tend their eggs.   They've also managed to dig under the rock and now enjoy nesting under there as well.   The two tube feeders are mounted in front for sugar/water and drinking water, making it easy to change them when empty.   

 

 

 

 

I call this the Rhubarb Stem Colony because I found them living in an old hollow rhubarb stem.   The entire colony was living in the stem, it was a simple matter of transferring them to a formicarium.    The middle unit is more of a queen module, the Uncle Milton Ant Farm on the right is where they keep eggs and small larvae.   Larger larvae and pupae are kept in the hollow piece of wood in the outworld on the left.   The outworld also has an oasis in the back right corner.   

 

I feed each colony through the feeding port in the front of their outworld on small white feeding trays.   I feed these ants a wide variety of meat products like canned dog food, chicken and turkey liver, chicken and turkey dark meat, salmon, egg yolk, raw pork, and assorted insects like crickets, flies, and sow bugs.   I feed insects mainly as a treat, there's very little trash to clean up as a result making these ants very easy to keep.  

 

 

 

 

With the blackout cover pulled back you can see the eggs and small larvae in the ant farm.   These ants, and this colony in particular, don't seem too concerned about light in their nest, making for easy viewing and less disturbance of their natural behaviour.   

 

 

 

 

This is the Grapevine Colony; they were living in an aluminum tent pole under my grape vines.   The module on the right is the queen chamber and the outworld on the left has a piece of wood where they keep their older brood as it is warmed by the sun.   .   The oasis is in the front right corner of the outworld where I can monitor the moisture easily while filling the water tower. 

 

 

 

 

This is the Picnic Table colony, acquired this summer.    The entire colony fills the left-hand module, the right-hand one is their outworld and there's more nest space available there when they need it.  

 

I don't think I've read very many journal entries about Tapinoma Sessile ant colonies.    Despite their bad reputation as house pests, I've found them to be some of the most entertaining and easiest ants to keep.   

RPT

 

[Ants_Dakota]

My Tapinoma Sessile Colonies

 

I've kept three Tapinoma Sessile colonies for four seasons, and I have one colony I acquired this summer.    I was forced to destroy one colony last year because of a mite infestation.   One of the things I like about these ants is that they're so easy to acquire.    All of them were full colonies with queens and brood and I found them in places like hollow tomato and rhubarb stems from the year before, an aluminum tent pole and I lured a colony into an Uncle Milton ant farm.  The colony I got this summer moved into a formicarium I left for them in a warm place under my picnic table.   

 

Although these ants can be a significant pest in the home, in a formicarium I find them to be active, good eaters that tend brood well and stay at a population that fits their housing.  They have multiple queens, so larvae feeding is pretty continuous throughout the season with no slow times when a batch of brood is in the pupal stage.  They readily transport pupae to warmer areas of the nest; in my workshop they're all in the window where they take advantage of the sunshine.    I usually shade part of the nest, so they have a warm area and a cooler area.   I use heavy mineral oil as a barrier, it's so effective that I keep some of them in open top formicaria.   

 

 

 

IMG_8112.JPG

 

This is the Pet Rock colony.    A heavy rock is the heart of this formicarium.   It's heated by the sun and keeps the colony warm during the night.   The rock actually helps to keep the colony from getting too warm in the sun because it absorbs heat and moderates temperature fluctuations.  I have numerous test tubes of various sizes buried within the moss and between the rock and the acrylic walls where the ants raise brood, and queens can find a secluded place to lay and tend their eggs.   They've also managed to dig under the rock and now enjoy nesting under there as well.   The two tube feeders are mounted in front for sugar/water and drinking water, making it easy to change them when empty.   

 

 

 

IMG_8116.JPG

 

I call this the Rhubarb Stem Colony because I found them living in an old hollow rhubarb stem.   The entire colony was living in the stem, it was a simple matter of transferring them to a formicarium.    The middle unit is more of a queen module, the Uncle Milton Ant Farm on the right is where they keep eggs and small larvae.   Larger larvae and pupae are kept in the hollow piece of wood in the outworld on the left.   The outworld also has an oasis in the back right corner.   

 

I feed each colony through the feeding port in the front of their outworld on small white feeding trays.   I feed these ants a wide variety of meat products like canned dog food, chicken and turkey liver, chicken and turkey dark meat, salmon, egg yolk, raw pork, and assorted insects like crickets, flies, and sow bugs.   I feed insects mainly as a treat, there's very little trash to clean up as a result making these ants very easy to keep.  

 

 

 

IMG_8120.JPG

 

With the blackout cover pulled back you can see the eggs and small larvae in the ant farm.   These ants, and this colony in particular, don't seem too concerned about light in their nest, making for easy viewing and less disturbance of their natural behaviour.   

 

 

 

IMG_8133.JPG

 

This is the Grapevine Colony; they were living in an aluminum tent pole under my grape vines.   The module on the right is the queen chamber and the outworld on the left has a piece of wood where they keep their older brood as it is warmed by the sun.   .   The oasis is in the front right corner of the outworld where I can monitor the moisture easily while filling the water tower. 

 

 

 

IMG_8121.JPG

 

This is the Picnic Table colony, acquired this summer.    The entire colony fills the left-hand module, the right-hand one is their outworld and there's more nest space available there when they need it.  

 

I don't think I've read very many journal entries about Tapinoma Sessile ant colonies.    Despite their bad reputation as house pests, I've found them to be some of the most entertaining and easiest ants to keep.   

RPT

I solidly agree that they are entertaining, and I appreciate your journal! I really liked how you lured the ants into the nest from nature, I think that is such a cool way to "capture" a wild colony. Keep up the good posts!

[ANTdrew]

April 1st: Tapinoma sessile Appreciation Day.

[AntsGodzilla]

My Tapinoma Sessile Colonies

 

I've kept three Tapinoma Sessile colonies for four seasons, and I have one colony I acquired this summer.    I was forced to destroy one colony last year because of a mite infestation.   One of the things I like about these ants is that they're so easy to acquire.    All of them were full colonies with queens and brood and I found them in places like hollow tomato and rhubarb stems from the year before, an aluminum tent pole and I lured a colony into an Uncle Milton ant farm.  The colony I got this summer moved into a formicarium I left for them in a warm place under my picnic table.   

 

Although these ants can be a significant pest in the home, in a formicarium I find them to be active, good eaters that tend brood well and stay at a population that fits their housing.  They have multiple queens, so larvae feeding is pretty continuous throughout the season with no slow times when a batch of brood is in the pupal stage.  They readily transport pupae to warmer areas of the nest; in my workshop they're all in the window where they take advantage of the sunshine.    I usually shade part of the nest, so they have a warm area and a cooler area.   I use heavy mineral oil as a barrier, it's so effective that I keep some of them in open top formicaria.   

 

 

 

IMG_8112.JPG

 

This is the Pet Rock colony.    A heavy rock is the heart of this formicarium.   It's heated by the sun and keeps the colony warm during the night.   The rock actually helps to keep the colony from getting too warm in the sun because it absorbs heat and moderates temperature fluctuations.  I have numerous test tubes of various sizes buried within the moss and between the rock and the acrylic walls where the ants raise brood, and queens can find a secluded place to lay and tend their eggs.   They've also managed to dig under the rock and now enjoy nesting under there as well.   The two tube feeders are mounted in front for sugar/water and drinking water, making it easy to change them when empty.   

 

 

 

IMG_8116.JPG

 

I call this the Rhubarb Stem Colony because I found them living in an old hollow rhubarb stem.   The entire colony was living in the stem, it was a simple matter of transferring them to a formicarium.    The middle unit is more of a queen module, the Uncle Milton Ant Farm on the right is where they keep eggs and small larvae.   Larger larvae and pupae are kept in the hollow piece of wood in the outworld on the left.   The outworld also has an oasis in the back right corner.   

 

I feed each colony through the feeding port in the front of their outworld on small white feeding trays.   I feed these ants a wide variety of meat products like canned dog food, chicken and turkey liver, chicken and turkey dark meat, salmon, egg yolk, raw pork, and assorted insects like crickets, flies, and sow bugs.   I feed insects mainly as a treat, there's very little trash to clean up as a result making these ants very easy to keep.  

 

 

 

IMG_8120.JPG

 

With the blackout cover pulled back you can see the eggs and small larvae in the ant farm.   These ants, and this colony in particular, don't seem too concerned about light in their nest, making for easy viewing and less disturbance of their natural behaviour.   

 

 

 

IMG_8133.JPG

 

This is the Grapevine Colony; they were living in an aluminum tent pole under my grape vines.   The module on the right is the queen chamber and the outworld on the left has a piece of wood where they keep their older brood as it is warmed by the sun.   .   The oasis is in the front right corner of the outworld where I can monitor the moisture easily while filling the water tower. 

 

 

 

IMG_8121.JPG

 

This is the Picnic Table colony, acquired this summer.    The entire colony fills the left-hand module, the right-hand one is their outworld and there's more nest space available there when they need it.  

 

I don't think I've read very many journal entries about Tapinoma Sessile ant colonies.    Despite their bad reputation as house pests, I've found them to be some of the most entertaining and easiest ants to keep.   

RPT

It's cool that you used an "ant farm" to keep them in!

[rptraut]

Feeding Multiple Colonies 

 

This is a continuation of the post "Feeding Time at the Zoo" found here   Feeding Time at the Zoo - General Ant Keeping - Ants & Myrmecology Forum (formiculture.com)    In it I detail how I prepare meat and make feeding trays.   Feeding a large number of colonies every day requires some effort and I'll show you what I do so it doesn't take a lot of time.

 

 

 

 

All feeding trays and tubes are washed in soap and hot water, then rinsed and dried.   I put all the feeding trays in the green container and use the bottle brush to clean them.   Behind the bottle brush is a test tube cleaner.   It's actually a soft green cleaning pad, stretched out and woven through the wire of an old fly swatter.   It slides easily into a tube, twisted a few times around, rinsed and the test tube is clean.   

 

 

 

 

 

Each feeding tray has a small piece of sponge with sugar/water and another with drinking water.   Cricket pieces was the special of the day. 

 

 

 

 

I find it easier to feed each colony by simply removing the old feeding tray and replacing it with a fresh one, so I make them all up at the same time.    I cut small pieces of sponge and soak them in sugar/water on the left and water on the right.    Also shown are some of the various tools I use, forceps, tweezers, scissors and scalpel.    An old cd case makes a great cutting board for meat and crickets and the folded paper towel below it is soaked in rubbing alcohol to disinfect tools etc.   

 

 

 

It's quite easy and quick to feed these small colonies, open the feeding port, remove old tray, insert new tray, close feeding port door.   I usually try to make enough commotion that it frightens workers away and lets me work without escapes.    

 

 

 

For larger colonies, I sometimes add a feeding module, with a feeding port mounted on top.   I paint the underside of the lid with oil, so no worries about ants escaping while the feeding port is open.   Feeding tubes out front have sugar/water and water.   They're easy to change when empty.  

 

These are some of the ways I make feeding easier.   I'm not usually too worried about speed, but I'd rather spend more time watching my ants eat than spend a lot of time feeding them.  

RPT

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

[rptraut]

Brachymyrmex depilis Update

 

I'm happy to update the status of my Brachymyrmex depilis colony and hope that it'll be of some help answering questions in the thread of Ants Dakota located here   Ants_Dakota's Micro Ants Journal(S. molesta, B. depilis) - Ant Keeping Journals - Ants & Myrmecology Forum (formiculture.com)

 

This may seem a little lengthy for a history, but hopefully the details may help someone to succeed with these ants.    

 

I first realized there was a small B. depilis colony in my garden in the summer of 2022.   For some reason (maybe the wood chip mulch) this area was the home of four other founding colonies of various kinds of ants.   Needless to say, I spent a lot of time watching this area and was lucky one day to see about ten depilis workers emerge from a small area of loose soil.   It was about four o'clock in the afternoon and very warm.   They seemed to forage frantically for about an hour and then disappeared into the loose soil.    I saw this happen on more than one occasion.    

 

Everyone comments on the cuteness of these ants, and I agree, but I also marvel at the miniaturization of insects and their ability to survive.   I realize there are smaller ants, but these are the smallest I know of around here.     I wanted a colony.   I think I bought two queens (don't quote me exactly, I'm going by memory, not receipts) at that time and set them up in natural formicaria, very similar to the colony I have now.    I put wood chips and sphagnum moss in the bottom, and a soil/peat/sand mix for the main substrate.    I intended these to be a moist environment, as I'd read that was what they preferred.   I never tried keeping one of these queens in a test tube.

 

 

 

A flat rock and some green moss on top finished it off.    Both colonies started off well, but as I stated before, I had to read clues like Sherlock Holmes to know there were ants living there.   Small holes through the moss, chewed up pieces of food, a large hole under the rock, this told me there were ants there.   But I never saw any.   Eventually that activity ceased for each one, no food eaten, holes with moss growing over, things like that told me it was over for each one.   I did have them on a heating mat at times: I don't know if overheating could be a cause, they seem to like a cooler nest than some ants.

 

Meanwhile, I kept watching the garden colony and slowly removing small amounts of the loose soil to get a better idea of the colonies size, habits, etc.    I soon realized that the colony wasn't that big and could easily be transferred to a small formicarium, which I did one sunny afternoon.   The entire colony comprised a lump of clay that barely covered the end of my trowel.   They continue to live in that lump of clay, but I have wood chips and sphagnum moss under to keep it moist.  After removing the colony, I was curious how they had been living.    Directly under the loose soil was an earthworm hole that went deep into the soil, and it looked to me like the ants were using it as a travel way.     I was aware they're supposed to live in symbiosis with root aphids or coccids, the worm hole led to a bundle of fine roots from a nearby peach tree.     There was no sign of any aphids or anything else, and I wondered at the time if they were living off root sap, just like aphids.   Just wondering if that's ever been seen before.    

 

 

 

I keep my Brachymyrmex depilis colony nestled among the other small colonies, with a 3.5x magnifying glass set up for viewing.

 

 

 

I think some of the failures could have been due to a few reasons.   These ants can escape through the smallest opening, and they do.   For some inexplicable reason, they'll escape and disappear, never to be seen again.   I know I also lost some nanitics because I'd throw out an insect carcass, not realizing there were ants still inside.   A colony can't afford to lose even one nanitic.   I now set old food aside and remove it later.   I also have a sponge at the top of the moss that I keep moist at all times.    This setup doesn't have much ventilation, overwatering is easy to do.    The waste food attracts mites, I added some predatory mites and snails, because I feared the mites were eating the ant eggs.   

 

 

 

I used to rejoice when I saw two workers out collecting food.   This season I've seen six at one time.   A record.    When I took these photos, I had just fed them, and they usually don't show up to eat until the next morning.    The colony is almost impossible to see, they smear clay on the acrylic and make it impossible to see them.   Watching them during feeding is the time I assess how they're doing.    I've found that these and other shy ants, will take more protein if their food is covered by something, I use their feeding tray.    I can still angle it so I can see under, it's not easy, I often just take pleasure in the fact that they hollowed out the fly I gave them.   They will often hide under their food or eat a tunnel into something like chicken.    I often wonder where they put the sugar/water they take because they all look like they're about to burst.    

 

 

 

 

They've smoothed the clay on top of the central mound, there's one large access hole, and numerous smaller holes surrounding it.    The sponge is on the left.

 

 

I've always fed this colony the same as I feed the rest of my ants.   Mostly meat products like canned dog food, chicken and chicken liver, raw pork, salmon and insects.   They only take small amounts of protein.   They'll tunnel into something like a fly and stay there until it goes mouldy.   I offer food in small pieces and leave food for two days and then remove the old food to a moss area where the snails usually finish it up.   

 

 

 

The smeared clay shows where the colony nest is located, but it's very hard to see the ants as a result.

 

I've never taken photos of these ants, they're just so small and they feed so secretly, but I'll try and get something with my wife's phone, if possible.   

I'll update this colony as often as I can with the rest of my colonies.   I hope this information helps, good luck with your ants.

RPT

 

 

 

 

[Ants_Dakota]

Brachymyrmex depilis Update

 

I'm happy to update the status of my Brachymyrmex depilis colony and hope that it'll be of some help answering questions in the thread of Ants Dakota located here   Ants_Dakota's Micro Ants Journal(S. molesta, B. depilis) - Ant Keeping Journals - Ants & Myrmecology Forum (formiculture.com)

 

This may seem a little lengthy for a history, but hopefully the details may help someone to succeed with these ants.    

 

I first realized there was a small B. depilis colony in my garden in the summer of 2022.   For some reason (maybe the wood chip mulch) this area was the home of four other founding colonies of various kinds of ants.   Needless to say, I spent a lot of time watching this area and was lucky one day to see about ten depilis workers emerge from a small area of loose soil.   It was about four o'clock in the afternoon and very warm.   They seemed to forage frantically for about an hour and then disappeared into the loose soil.    I saw this happen on more than one occasion.    

 

Everyone comments on the cuteness of these ants, and I agree, but I also marvel at the miniaturization of insects and their ability to survive.   I realize there are smaller ants, but these are the smallest I know of around here.     I wanted a colony.   I think I bought two queens (don't quote me exactly, I'm going by memory, not receipts) at that time and set them up in natural formicaria, very similar to the colony I have now.    I put wood chips and sphagnum moss in the bottom, and a soil/peat/sand mix for the main substrate.    I intended these to be a moist environment, as I'd read that was what they preferred.   I never tried keeping one of these queens in a test tube.

 

 

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A flat rock and some green moss on top finished it off.    Both colonies started off well, but as I stated before, I had to read clues like Sherlock Holmes to know there were ants living there.   Small holes through the moss, chewed up pieces of food, a large hole under the rock, this told me there were ants there.   But I never saw any.   Eventually that activity ceased for each one, no food eaten, holes with moss growing over, things like that told me it was over for each one.   I did have them on a heating mat at times: I don't know if overheating could be a cause, they seem to like a cooler nest than some ants.

 

Meanwhile, I kept watching the garden colony and slowly removing small amounts of the loose soil to get a better idea of the colonies size, habits, etc.    I soon realized that the colony wasn't that big and could easily be transferred to a small formicarium, which I did one sunny afternoon.   The entire colony comprised a lump of clay that barely covered the end of my trowel.   They continue to live in that lump of clay, but I have wood chips and sphagnum moss under to keep it moist.  After removing the colony, I was curious how they had been living.    Directly under the loose soil was an earthworm hole that went deep into the soil, and it looked to me like the ants were using it as a travel way.     I was aware they're supposed to live in symbiosis with root aphids or coccids, the worm hole led to a bundle of fine roots from a nearby peach tree.     There was no sign of any aphids or anything else, and I wondered at the time if they were living off root sap, just like aphids.   Just wondering if that's ever been seen before.    

 

 

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I keep my Brachymyrmex depilis colony nestled among the other small colonies, with a 3.5x magnifying glass set up for viewing.

 

 

 

I think some of the failures could have been due to a few reasons.   These ants can escape through the smallest opening, and they do.   For some inexplicable reason, they'll escape and disappear, never to be seen again.   I know I also lost some nanitics because I'd throw out an insect carcass, not realizing there were ants still inside.   A colony can't afford to lose even one nanitic.   I now set old food aside and remove it later.   I also have a sponge at the top of the moss that I keep moist at all times.    This setup doesn't have much ventilation, overwatering is easy to do.    The waste food attracts mites, I added some predatory mites and snails, because I feared the mites were eating the ant eggs.   

 

 

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I used to rejoice when I saw two workers out collecting food.   This season I've seen six at one time.   A record.    When I took these photos, I had just fed them, and they usually don't show up to eat until the next morning.    The colony is almost impossible to see, they smear clay on the acrylic and make it impossible to see them.   Watching them during feeding is the time I assess how they're doing.    I've found that these and other shy ants, will take more protein if their food is covered by something, I use their feeding tray.    I can still angle it so I can see under, it's not easy, I often just take pleasure in the fact that they hollowed out the fly I gave them.   They will often hide under their food or eat a tunnel into something like chicken.    I often wonder where they put the sugar/water they take because they all look like they're about to burst.    

 

 

 

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They've smoothed the clay on top of the central mound, there's one large access hole, and numerous smaller holes surrounding it.    The sponge is on the left.

 

 

I've always fed this colony the same as I feed the rest of my ants.   Mostly meat products like canned dog food, chicken and chicken liver, raw pork, salmon and insects.   They only take small amounts of protein.   They'll tunnel into something like a fly and stay there until it goes mouldy.   I offer food in small pieces and leave food for two days and then remove the old food to a moss area where the snails usually finish it up.   

 

 

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The smeared clay shows where the colony nest is located, but it's very hard to see the ants as a result.

 

I've never taken photos of these ants, they're just so small and they feed so secretly, but I'll try and get something with my wife's phone, if possible.   

I'll update this colony as often as I can with the rest of my colonies.   I hope this information helps, good luck with your ants.

RPT

I really appreciate the time you took to update the only captive colony documented on formiculture, and especially one in a natural setup. I think you information about the heating could come in helpful, and I plan on not heating my colonies in the spring unless something seems to be wrong. The behavior you documented is really cool, and you are probably the first to notice that. All I can say is keep up the good work and I look forward to hopefully becoming a keeper of some B. depilis along side you in the future!