So several weeks back I caught two ant queens in my backyard, and I.D.'ed them as Camponotus queens. Here's the backstory on all of that: http://forum.AntsCanada.com/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=5689
In that last post, I said things get complicated if they lay eggs. Well, I forgot that box even existed for about 3 weeks now, until today when I was taking my dog outside. I was sitting down on the patio, and noticed my box sitting in its secluded and shady spot. Having a small panic attack, I opened up the box, and not only were both queens alive, they both LAID EGGS!
Normally I'd be jumping with joy, especially if this was a year ago when I was hyper-dedicated to trying to find a queen (to no avail), but the situation has changed. As far as I can tell, NEITHER of my parents are comfortable with the idea of me raising an ant colony, for fear that they might break out and destroy our house.
I have the money, time, and dedication to take care of both of the queens if I wanted to, but it's a question of whether my parents are ever going to change their minds, and if not, what I should do with them. I'm vaguely aware of the GAN project, but I'm not a legal adult and I have no clue how half the system works. Plus, parents are also required there.
I guess I could try to just go and partially bury the test tubes somewhere with a hole drilled in the side and top exposed to the surface as a form of "released starter colony", but is that cruel? Will they even survive if I did that?
TL;DR: Forgot I picked up 2 queens, they're laying eggs, and both my parents don't enjoy the idea of a formicarium.
My only saving grace is that they just laid their eggs, and Camponotus Queens move at a snail's pace, so I have time on my side when it comes to making a decision.
Any and all help is highly appreciated!!!
-Antlover84
Need help with an ant quandary!
Moderator: ooper01
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Re: Need help with an ant quandary!
I've heard of a idea were you can keep the ant colony outside in a formicarium. You cover the nest with something and just have a exit big enough for the workers and not the queen this way the colony can't go away and they can forage outside. but of course their are problems the majors might not be able to get out and were can you hibernate them and finally a wild colony might attack.
Some of My Informative Sheets
https://forum.AntsCanada.com/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=19099
Includes :
https://forum.AntsCanada.com/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=19099
Includes :
- Ant Care Sheets
Queen Hunting
How To Identify Ants
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