153 replies to this topic

[dspdrew]

Update 11-6-2023
 
This colony is growing very fast and is already up to around 400 or so workers with about 25 majors. I've been feeding them like crazy so maybe that is part of the reason why.
 
Here's some pictures from when they had around 300 or so workers.
 

 

 

 
 
I decided to move them into the same formicarium I had my last really large colony in. I fixed some problems with the hydration so hopefully this colony won't end up like the last one when all the water leaked out.
 
I just dropped their test tube in the foraging container.
 

 

 
 
Removed the plug.
 

 
 
The first workers have started to explore. We'll see how long it takes for them to move in this time. As you can see in this picture, I cut the ceramic back-plate in two so that only the very bottom chamber remains wet.
 

 
 
You can see how much chewing they have been doing on their little silicone test tube plug.
 

[ANTdrew]

Holy Mother of Brood!!! This is awesome.

[100lols]

This species grows insanely fast! My colony is doing the same. Easily becoming one of my family species due to their activity. Thanks for the update

[dspdrew]

Update 11-8-2023
 
The next day they were all moved in. I just removed the empty test tube and dumped in a bunch of fruit flies.
 

 

 
 
These things gang up on the fruit flies and take them down within seconds.
 

[dspdrew]

[ANTdrew]

Savage!

[100lols]

This colony is so epic! Loving the videos man.

[dspdrew]

Update 11-23-2023
 
I've been paying much closer attention to a lot of my colonies this season, and I can't believe how much these things eat. I've been feeding them every day or two, and there isn't one piece of food left-over in a trash pile. I'm not even sure where this much food could be going, but it's amazing. I have given them probably 6 full-sized crickets in the last 2 weeks, and they have eaten every last bit of them. Most ants will leave the dried up exoskeleton in the trash pile, but not these, they eat it all.

[ANTdrew]

I wish I had ants that dealt with bugs like that!

[dspdrew]

I wish I had ants that dealt with bugs like that!

 

Yeah, it's nice to never have to clean anything out of the foraging area.

[ANTdrew]

I’ll say. The closest thing I have are my Aphaenogaster treatae that are extremely fastidious about putting all their trash in a neat pile in one corner of their outworld.

[100lols]

Love neat ants!! My vistana colony doesn’t seem to make the exoskeletons disappear like yours. But they are eaters.

Solenopsis sp. are always my neatest ants. They grind up exoskeletons into powder and have a dedicated trash pile.

[dspdrew]

Update 2-4-2024
 
The colony has gotten huge since the last update. I estimate about 1500 workers now. I'm probably going to have to find something larger to put them in soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[BleepingBleepers]

Sweet updates!

 

Nice!