2 replies to this topic

[Socalfireants]

I was looking at colonies for sale on the antscanada GAN project awhile back and there was a Pogonomyrmex californicus bicolor colony of 500 in a homemade dirt formicarium, for 250$. That seems like alot to me, unless its one NICE dirt farm

[Crystals]

To determine if the price is reasonable, we would need pictures of the setup - does it include a foraging area or additional supplies?  Some formicariums are worth a lot (test tubes are cheap).

That being said, that is the price they set.  If the state they live in has few colonies for sale, it is possible that an individual would not have much option for purchasing ants and would be willing to pay that price if they didn't want to collect a queen and wait.  For some research groups or museums that is pocket change.

It can sometimes take a while to get a colony to a decent size.

 

I have had some research/science groups buy large colonies off of me for more than that, simply because there was no one else around and shipping laws meant they had to purchase the colony in Canada.  For them it was pocket change, and one even told me he would have been willing to pay twice as much because the project he was working on was worth a lot. 

For hobbyists, it may or may not be too much, depending on details.  Some people are willing to pay more for ants than others.  If it is too high of a price, then it won't sell.  The buyer is always welcome to buy smaller/cheaper colonies or catch their own queens.  We don't have to spend hundreds of dollars to get a colony, queen ants are free if you pick them up off of the ground.

 

Personally, I have no need to buy colonies and would not be paying that kind of money for a colony. Although when I first got into ants I would have bought some if there had been anyone in Canada selling a colony and willing to ship.  There are still one or two species I would pay for, simply because I am unable to find them.  Most of the time, if I want a certain species, I go out hiking a lot until I find a queen.

[dspdrew]

I was looking at colonies for sale on the antscanada GAN project awhile back and there was a pogo californicus bicolor colony of 500 in a homemade dirt formicarium, for 250$. That seems like alot to me, unless its one NICE dirt farm

 

I think that was mine. That formicarium was probably worth $30, so most of that was for the colony of 500+.