Hibernation Help

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ItShallBeJordan
Posts: 16
Joined: Sat Mar 04, 2017 7:44 pm

Hibernation Help

Post: # 33012Post ItShallBeJordan
Thu Nov 23, 2017 8:03 pm

So I live in kentucky and have a aphaenogaster colony. The past couple days they have been very inactive and believe might be entering hibernation. I keep them in my office and am not sure if I should move them or just leave them on my desk. So I live in kentucky and have a aphaenogaster colony. The past couple days they have been very inactive and believe might be entering hibernation. I keep them in my office and am not sure if I should move them or just leave them on my desk. Any help is appreciated! (This is my first year of ant keeping)
Ant Keeping Motto
"Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." - Winston Churchill
I like reptiles, turtles, tortoises, amphibians, mammals and of course ants!

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idahoantgirl
Posts: 1521
Joined: Sat Sep 12, 2015 11:52 am
Location: Idaho, USA

Re: Hibernation Help

Post: # 33013Post idahoantgirl
Thu Nov 23, 2017 9:51 pm

ItShallBeJordan wrote:
Thu Nov 23, 2017 8:03 pm
So I live in kentucky and have a aphaenogaster colony. The past couple days they have been very inactive and believe might be entering hibernation. I keep them in my office and am not sure if I should move them or just leave them on my desk. So I live in kentucky and have a aphaenogaster colony. The past couple days they have been very inactive and believe might be entering hibernation. I keep them in my office and am not sure if I should move them or just leave them on my desk. Any help is appreciated! (This is my first year of ant keeping)
General rule of thumb is to put them into hibernation when you stop seeings ants outside, and bring them out in spring when you see the ants outside again. Put them in a unheated garage, crawlspace, shed, attic.. anywhere that gets close to the temperature outside without actually putting them outside.
Proverbs 6:6-8

Go to the ant, you sluggard;
consider its ways and be wise!
It has no commander,
no overseer or ruler,
yet it stores its provisions in summer
and gathers its food at harvest.

Keeping Tetramorium immigrans, Tapinoma Sessile

ItShallBeJordan
Posts: 16
Joined: Sat Mar 04, 2017 7:44 pm

Re: Hibernation Help

Post: # 33015Post ItShallBeJordan
Thu Nov 23, 2017 10:04 pm

Thanks idahoantgirl, I have a garage but it stays heated, what are the risks of just leaving them in a room temp room (70F)?
Ant Keeping Motto
"Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." - Winston Churchill
I like reptiles, turtles, tortoises, amphibians, mammals and of course ants!

User avatar
idahoantgirl
Posts: 1521
Joined: Sat Sep 12, 2015 11:52 am
Location: Idaho, USA

Re: Hibernation Help

Post: # 33016Post idahoantgirl
Fri Nov 24, 2017 1:40 pm

ItShallBeJordan wrote:
Thu Nov 23, 2017 10:04 pm
Thanks idahoantgirl, I have a garage but it stays heated, what are the risks of just leaving them in a room temp room (70F)?
They may not hibernate fully. They will still sow down (they have an inner clock) but the queen will probably lay more eggs in the spring if she is hibernated in a cold place. Some people use a fridge, but you may have to make the fridge a little warmer for the queen. A beer cooler works well
Proverbs 6:6-8

Go to the ant, you sluggard;
consider its ways and be wise!
It has no commander,
no overseer or ruler,
yet it stores its provisions in summer
and gathers its food at harvest.

Keeping Tetramorium immigrans, Tapinoma Sessile

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