22 replies to this topic

[PerthAntKeeper]

Recently I've wanted to start giving my ants honey rather then sugar water because it doesn't go off and I don't need to make a fairly large batch like sugar water (to be able to mix the sugar and water) for my small colonies but the honey I gave them was processed Jarrah honey, and I'm wondering if they won't eat certain types of honey so I still give them sugar water just in case. But yeah I haven't really seen too much about this specifically, should the honey be watered down and natural? 

[CoolColJ]

Raw honey lasts a long time and will not go off if it never gets wet, plus it will form a surface that ants can walk on after a bit

While refined honey will go off after a while, and drowning risk is greater if too thick

 

So don't add water to raw honey if you want it to last

 

I find my ants prefer the raw honey I give them over sugar water, plus I don't have to mix it!

Edited by CoolColJ, April 21 2018 - 5:17 AM.

[PerthAntKeeper]

Alright cool. I only put a bit soaked into a cotton bud so yeah I wasn't too worried about drownings but yeah I'll get raw honey.

[CoolColJ]

Alright cool. I only put a bit soaked into a cotton bud so yeah I wasn't too worried about drownings but yeah I'll get raw honey.

 

cotton bud works well, I used that for my Strobe ant queen in the Atome C nest

 

[Hunter]

just be careful if you buy honey from a store as some can be knock offs and have fructose corn syrup in it.

Edited by Hunter, April 21 2018 - 5:04 AM.

[gcsnelling]

In addition I have had some major losses after using honey which I suspect may be a result of pesticides in the honey, this is the same reason I do not use flies other than fruit flies as feed.

[123LordOfAnts123]

While pure honey is regularly accepted, most species can have trouble consuming it due to its viscous nature, and it can be very difficult for ants to remove should they become covered. I only ever offer it diluted with water, with improved receptivity and clearly faster imbibement.
Honeywater ferments after about a week, but this doesn’t seem to affect the ants in any way. In fact, I’ve noticed some instances where the ants prefer some amount of fermentation as opposed to the fresh stuff.

Store bought honey may be hit or miss, as Hunter states they may not even be pure honey. Also, honey commonly contains trace amounts of pesticides in the form of neonicotinoids. This can be as harmful to the ants as to the honey bees, so try and source honey from high quality sources/types - like wildflower honey - where agricultural practices are less likely to result in a tainted product.

[Jonathan21700]

Somebody mentioned a long time ago that giving pure honey might result in dehydration and that sugar water contains the type of sugars ants get and and need in the wild as opposed to honey. Does anyone know anything about this?

I also have had bad results with honey, so I now feed with different fruits and sugar water.

Edited by Jonathan21700, April 21 2018 - 8:11 AM.

[StayLoki]

Thank you posting this perth!!
I was wondering the same but didn't ask in case it had been answered and was trolling around in preferred foods, etc..
Thank you!

[Serafine]

My Camponotus barbaricus prefer diluted maple syrup over anything else. They do drink sugar water and similar liquids but they don't like honey.

[TennesseeAnts]

Alright cool. I only put a bit soaked into a cotton bud so yeah I wasn't too worried about drownings but yeah I'll get raw honey.

cotton bud works well, I used that for my Strobe ant queen in the Atome C nest

I love your colony! And so this is not just a post that doesn't matter, my ants prefer sugar water over honey.

Edited by Ant_Dude2908, April 21 2018 - 11:48 AM.

[PwnerPie]

I have had ant die offs from raw honey, i only give them organic foods so it shouldn't have been from pesticides. The theory is that it is too "dry" and chunky and their bodies can't get through it properly.

I do give all my ants small drops of regular organic honey (not raw), no deaths from that and they love it. I have formica species and myrmica, no issues. Their total diet is honey and meal worms.

Edited by PwnerPie, April 21 2018 - 3:17 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Well the raw honey I use is called Beechworth Honey

 

It has huge slabs of bee honeycomb in it

It also has a very strong smell

Edited by CoolColJ, April 21 2018 - 3:20 PM.

[gcsnelling]

There are many pesticides used in the production of Organic fruits and vegetables which could easily be transmitted to the honey. Also keep in mind foraging bees do not pay attention to field boundary marks and can easily forage out a supposedly pesticide free field. Sad to say but the organic fad is just another way to separate the unsuspecting from their money.

Edited by gcsnelling, April 21 2018 - 3:40 PM.

[Mortamir]

Well the raw honey I use is called Beechworth Honey

It has huge slabs of bee honeycomb in it
It also has a very strong smell

[Mortamir]

Whoops, CoolJ, I assume they really like the honeycomb? I was thinking of getting some with honeycomb.

[CoolColJ]

Whoops, CoolJ, I assume they really like the honeycomb? I was thinking of getting some with honeycomb.

 

Well i don't put the honeycomb out for the ants, since I just use a toothpick to dab some honey for the ants on a wax paper or shaped piece of foil with "handle" to make it easy to insert into test tubes and stability.

At this rate my jar will last till I die

 

In any case I read that honey bee industry jacks all their bees with antibiotics, so yeah it could be an issue

 

 

edit - promo video for Beechworth Honey, and pic of the honey I use with the honeycomb wafers

 

 

Edited by CoolColJ, April 21 2018 - 4:54 PM.

[Hunter]

the strong smell comes from the small amounts of royal jelly and the natural comb.

[drtrmiller]

Relying on bees to collect sugars, and then relying on humans to process the fluids—all while avoiding contamination in the form of pesticides, herbicides, and other toxins—is not something that a reasonable person would advise.  Even beyond that, I've observed that honey loses its attractiveness extremely quickly upon exposure to air.  The point is, you can never really be sure what's in honey just by looking at or tasting it.

 

If you're happy with the sugar you're feeding your ants, then my advice would be to continue doing what you're doing.  However, if you're just getting started keeping ants, a do-it-yourself sugar water solution is the optimal delivery vehicle, while Sunburst Ant Nectar is likely the best commercial option.

Edited by drtrmiller, April 21 2018 - 8:46 PM.

[PerthAntKeeper]

Relying on bees to collect sugars, and then relying on humans to process the fluids—all while avoiding contamination in the form of pesticides, herbicides, and other toxins—is not something that a reasonable person would advise.  Even beyond that, I've observed that honey loses its attractiveness extremely quickly upon exposure to air.  The point is, you can never really be sure what's in honey just by looking at or tasting it.

 

If you're happy with the sugar you're feeding your ants, then my advice would be to continue doing what you're doing.  However, if you're just getting started keeping ants, a do-it-yourself sugar water solution is the optimal delivery vehicle, while Sunburst Ant Nectar is likely the best commercial option.

 

Yeah I didn't see them eating the honey, although the drops of sugar water I give them are generally gone by the next day, can you keep sugar water for a extended amount of time? Like in a fridge maybe? The only problem I have with sugar water is putting most of it down the sink because only a few drops are needed.