3 replies to this topic

[1tsm3jack]

Since Monomorium are so small and they can get out of formicaria very easily, how would you contain them once they are put into an actual formicarium and not a test tube? My best guess is just give them a tank setup with dirt and let them build their nests and have a fluon barrier so there are no gaps between nests and tubes and outworlds, but anyone who keeps M. Minimum please let me know.

 

Edit: also wondering for next anting season if I find more Monomorium queens could I introduce them to my current colony and would they accept them?

Edited by 1tsm3jack, October 24 2024 - 7:07 AM.

[ANTdrew]

If I were to try these again, I’d use an all in one kind of setup with a big plastic display case as the outworld. I’d cut a big hole out of the middle of the lid and then glue the lid down with silicone. Finally, I’d line the bottom of the lid with talcohol.

[AntsGodzilla]

Since Monomorium are so small and they can get out of formicaria very easily, how would you contain them once they are put into an actual formicarium and not a test tube? My best guess is just give them a tank setup with dirt and let them build their nests and have a fluon barrier so there are no gaps between nests and tubes and outworlds, but anyone who keeps M. Minimum please let me know.

 

Edit: also wondering for next anting season if I find more Monomorium queens could I introduce them to my current colony and would they accept them?

In my experience, my ergatogyn will accept new queens.

[Ants_Dakota]

Since Monomorium are so small and they can get out of formicaria very easily, how would you contain them once they are put into an actual formicarium and not a test tube? My best guess is just give them a tank setup with dirt and let them build their nests and have a fluon barrier so there are no gaps between nests and tubes and outworlds, but anyone who keeps M. Minimum please let me know.

 

Edit: also wondering for next anting season if I find more Monomorium queens could I introduce them to my current colony and would they accept them?

It depends on where you buy your formicaria and how many queens. If I ever raised a colony of M. minimum, I would keep them in a Por Amor Array formicarium with Cryptic Ant Inserts. The fittings on the outworld, nest, and test tubes of this setup are incredibly tight, because of the precision of 3d printers, while nests made by hand have a larger margin of error, making them likely for M. minimum to escape from (RushmoreAnts has had both Tetramorium immigrans and Lasius americanus escape from TarHeelAnts setups). According to Buckeye Myrmecology, these ants only get several thousand workers per queen, so a couple queen will fit into an array formicarium. Any more queens than this and you can just string Array Formicaria together.