Messor Barbarus Diapause Feeding

[Mortaliton]

Good Afternoon

I am new getting into the Ant hobby. I got my first Ant Farm after watching a video on youtube and it seemed pretty interesting. As it seems with a lot of research it will sit empty for a tad bit and the test tube is the way to go.

Currently I have the following Ant and supplies.

- Messor barbarus Queen Ant
- AC test tube portal
- Extra Test tubes
- Insect Protien mix ( Food )
- Ant Farm

So from my research the Messor Barbarus diapause in the colder season. I have found a few mixed answers ranging from it ends in January to March. I also read that once a Queen ant mates she will utilize the protien in her wings as a source of food while she is in diapause. My concern is if thats the case, can she survive with just water in the test tube? or should I move her to a new test tube with Sugar water?

I do not want to stress her out. From what I find I should not check in on her more than 1-2 times a week.

Also I should not even consider moving to the ant farm until she has about 10-20 workers?

Any input is very much appreciated. I'm starting from scratch and I know there is a lot to learn for this.

Thank You in advance, and Happy Holidays!

[Angelants2012]

Hi,
From what I have heard from you, I think that you can just leave her alone, and check on her once every month, with the feeding, just give her some protein and sugars, every month you check on her. How large is the ant farm? You should move her into the ant farm when she reaches 50+ workers, but I don't know how large is the ant farm, so this is just knowledge from my ants.





Happy New Year!