How to raise Carpenter Ants to large numbers

[AntsAreCool715]

Hi everyone.
Can anyone tell me how to raise Carpenter Ants from Malaysia (I live at Malaysia) past their first batch of workers? After the first batch of workers the queen stops laying eggs and the colony dies out after the queen refuses to eat. How do I prevent this?

[RubyAntKeeper77]

She was probably infertile. Try with a different queen.

[AntsAreCool715]

She was probably infertile. Try with a different queen.

But how can it be infertile when she got her first batch of nanitics to be workers? Doesn't she lays workers afterwards too?
Thanks for any answer!

[RubyAntKeeper77]

My guess is that the queen got stressed and the workers got mites or a disease that killed them or they just got old. And the eggs were killed before they could hatch.


If you still have the bodies check and see if they have mites.

I think that having a different colony might work better. But I don’t know.

[antperson24]

Hi everyone.
Can anyone tell me how to raise Carpenter Ants from Malaysia (I live at Malaysia) past their first batch of workers? After the first batch of workers the queen stops laying eggs and the colony dies out after the queen refuses to eat. How do I prevent this?

Were you heating them? What did you feed them?

[AntsAreCool715]

My guess is that the queen got stressed and the workers got mites or a disease that killed them or they just got old. And the eggs were killed before they could hatch.


If you still have the bodies check and see if they have mites.

I think that having a different colony might work better. But I don’t know.

I didn't see any mites that time. I think they were just stressed.

[AntsAreCool715]

Hi everyone.
Can anyone tell me how to raise Carpenter Ants from Malaysia (I live at Malaysia) past their first batch of workers? After the first batch of workers the queen stops laying eggs and the colony dies out after the queen refuses to eat. How do I prevent this?

Were you heating them? What did you feed them?

I don't have a heating mat or wire. I put them in my room, which can be quite warm as the normal temperature in Ipoh is 33-37 degrees Celsius. I fed them small insects I could find (grasshoppers, roaches, etc. I cannot have any mealworms)
I fed them sugary foods such as jelly or candy.

[RubyAntKeeper77]

That diet should have been perfect.

[antperson24]

Hi everyone.
Can anyone tell me how to raise Carpenter Ants from Malaysia (I live at Malaysia) past their first batch of workers? After the first batch of workers the queen stops laying eggs and the colony dies out after the queen refuses to eat. How do I prevent this?

Were you heating them? What did you feed them?

I don't have a heating mat or wire. I put them in my room, which can be quite warm as the normal temperature in Ipoh is 33-37 degrees Celsius. I fed them small insects I could find (grasshoppers, roaches, etc. I cannot have any mealworms)
I fed them sugary foods such as jelly or candy.

You don't need to heat them then. The protein sounds good, but they need honey or sugar water; that might be the issue.

[AntsAreCool715]

Were you heating them? What did you feed them?

I don't have a heating mat or wire. I put them in my room, which can be quite warm as the normal temperature in Ipoh is 33-37 degrees Celsius. I fed them small insects I could find (grasshoppers, roaches, etc. I cannot have any mealworms)
I fed them sugary foods such as jelly or candy.

You don't need to heat them then. The protein sounds good, but they need honey or sugar water; that might be the issue.

Ok. Noted. I will try to find a camponotus queen. It is raining sometimes and sometimes I am allowed to go out
Will update soon.