4 replies to this topic

[evanmancini2011]

Sorry for not posing much in the last few months. This is because my ants have been in hibernation so their is not to much to post about. I am keep all my ants at 32-40 degrees Fahrenheit and I noticed that my crematogaster ant colony has been piling up in their test tube setup is this normal? And when I checked on them earlier today I noticed they are out of water. How should I give my ants more water if they are in hibernation? 

 

Here is a picture of them piling up! Sorry for the blurriness!

 

[SporadicSausage]

A quick Google search tells me that these ants need minimum 41 to 50 degrees f. I use Celsius but your temperature is close to 0 after converting which is too cold. I believe they are huddling together for warmth and to conserve energy which may well happen when they're hibernating anyway. Id increase the temperature because it's likely way too cold. They shouldn't need much water during hibernation if at all as they slow down their metabolism drastically. But to stay on the safe side you can either offer them a new tube with water or give them a couple drops on a cotton earbud ball every other day. I'm not as clued up on ants as I used to be so someone else may be able to offer some better insight.

[RushmoreAnts]

I agree 41-50 degrees is more ideal, and the ants clumping together is perfectly natural, as previously mentioned to conserve heat and energy. Humans cuddle. Ants do too. All of my ants do it during hibernation no matter the temperature.

[evanmancini2011]

Ok thank you for all your help!

[ANTdrew]

Shake the huddled mass into a new test tube with plenty of water. You do not want them to dry out. Also increase their temperature.