Okay all, this is my first year collecting queens, and I am really excited. Today... TODAY!!!! I caught two Odontomachus queens. TRAP JAW ANTS!
I am terribly excited for these little buggers, but my research has told me that they are difficult to get up and running, and they are semi-claustral... Here is where the problem comes in... I am going on a 10 day vacation TOMORROW.
I have them both in the kind of Tar-Heel Ants Mini-Hearth as pictured. I have both the water tower and the nest mate filled with water. And I have a water dish filled with brown sugar water in the outworld.
I know that Odontomachus sp. are predators. Hunters. And I am unsure if they will be okay while I am out of town. When I put the brown sugar water towers in, they both went to them and drank heavily. So I know they're taking a liking to those.
Any tips? Tricks? Has anybody raised trap jaws before? I don't have time to go to a reptile store to get feeders for them. I don't have someone I can trust to feed them. Heck, I wouldn't even know what directions to leave for someone.
These are among the very first ants I have caught, they're known to be difficult, I am going out of town, and I am ultimately clueless. Any input or help would be MUCH appreciated.
Photo!
https://imgur.com/gallery/ZGYQl