5 replies to this topic

[Martin.dean1981]

I have a new ant colony 1 queen + 10 workers (introduced into formicarium 5 days ago) they've been working hard digging but yesterday they covered the entrance hole which also strangly had a blade of grass growing out of it. I can see the ants are moving about in the nest but they haven't been in the outworld since, is this normal or do I need to expose the entrance hole? The formicarium is moist inside the tunnels so I assume this is where they are getting moisture from?

[Martin.dean1981]

Photos of covered entrance hole

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[Ernteameise]

Hi there, I am also keeping Messor barbarus.

I admit, at the beginning, I also had that formicarium you are having. It is from AntHouse in Spain, am I right?

It is not very good quality, it will warp sooner or later due to the humidity and since it is made from acrylic. This is just what acrylic does after a while.

Humidity control and air-flow are also not very good.

So you will have to re-home the colony to something more sturdy and long-term sooner or later.

Just have a look at my Messor barbarus journal for some inspiration (however, the failed colony that had been on that formicarium you are having is NOT part of the journal, since this happened before I joined the forum, just as a warning, it did not work for me and I started new with better materials).

 

Anyways, to your question.

It would have been better to keep the ants in a tubs and tubes setup- just a plain small plastic box in the glass tube they came in. But since you have them now in that AntHouse thing-

humidity is a problem. I honestly do not know how to really beat this problem in that thing. This is the big negative issue with it.

I know, AntHouse sells these things cheap for beginners, however, I cannot recommend them with a good conscience.

However, as you can see in my Messor barbarus journal, the AntHouse plain acrylic nest worked well for my started colony for the first year until I replaced it.

The grass you see growing- it will be from one of the seed that the ants have stored underground and it has sprouted.

Not good- this means, other seed are too humid and they might go off, or moldy, which is not good.

Normally, the ants should have a moist and a dry nest part (moist for brood and dry for seed storage).

 

Second- this is a tiny colony you are having.

They honestly do not need much food.

For the next months, you will hardly ever see them. That is normal.

Just to know- one weed grain (too large for your tiny colony, just feed them tiny seed like grass seed, salat seed, dandelion collected outside, chia, quinoa) will entertain 40 Messor ants for 8 hours, chewing it up to ant bread. Just to give you a sense of scale. With 10 workers, you can imagine how little food they need.

Also offer them some small insects, like one small cricket or a couple of fruit flies or similar.

And it is totally normal for ants to close their nest entrance.

It is just like with humans- or do you sleep with the door to your flat / house wide open?

[Martin.dean1981]

Thanks for the response great information and just proves what a novice I am, your correct I did buy it from Anthouse Spain with the ants, the seeds come with the ants and the ants moved the seeds into the top section (near surface) of the tunnel and they now all seem to be living at the very bottom of the sand and happily moving about. I can now see a few seeds have germinated through the sides and still the ants haven't appeared in the outworld. I'll just leave the hole covered and let the ants do what they do, if they survive until 15/03 I'll buy a new formicarium. Who'd have throught having ants would be so technical and now expensive with a 2nd formicarium required? LOL

[Ernteameise]

Thanks for the response great information and just proves what a novice I am, your correct I did buy it from Anthouse Spain with the ants, the seeds come with the ants and the ants moved the seeds into the top section (near surface) of the tunnel and they now all seem to be living at the very bottom of the sand and happily moving about. I can now see a few seeds have germinated through the sides and still the ants haven't appeared in the outworld. I'll just leave the hole covered and let the ants do what they do, if they survive until 15/03 I'll buy a new formicarium. Who'd have throught having ants would be so technical and now expensive with a 2nd formicarium required? LOL

For a starter colony, it is not expensive at all.

It is just what all that marketing tries to suggest to you.

For your small starter colony, a small plastic box (like the ones Ferrero Rocher came in, so basically "rubbish" that you trow away after eating the chocolades) and a plain simple 80 cent glass tube are enough and will last you for 1 year until your Messor colony grows larger in the 2nd and 3rd year. That is the best way to start. Just have a look at the beginner and basic explanation threads here in the forum.

Sadly, all this you will learn after some disappointment with the commercial marketing and of course after you joined this forum.

So welcome to the forum, you did the right thing coming here and just keep persevering.

[Ernteameise]

Have a look at my Lasius niger journal, from page 2 I show my tubs and tubes setup.

You can do exactly the same for a small Messor colony.

This is all it needs, and pretty much everyone of the very experienced ant keepers here on the forum agree that this is indeed the best way to start a colony.

And as you can see, this is not expensive or complicated or technical at all.

 

https://www.formicul...us-niger/page-2

Edited by Ernteameise, Yesterday, 2:31 AM.