planning a semi-claustral setup.

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JPSMedeiros

planning a semi-claustral setup.

Post: # 13867Post JPSMedeiros
Sat Oct 15, 2016 2:17 pm

Hello, i'm new to ant keeping and I have to make an out-world for my Pachycondyla sp that is semi-claustral.

I'm thinking in buying one of these:
Image

and place some stuff inside, but i don't know yet what, could use some help. And to keep it dark, what should I do?

MimzytheBun

Re: planning a semi-claustral setup.

Post: # 13880Post MimzytheBun
Sat Oct 15, 2016 6:26 pm

It is hard to tell but that looks like quite a large plastic bin. If you've only got your queen right now, I'd recommend using something much smaller along the lines of a Tupperware container. I'm trying to found two semi claustral queens right now and I found even with a cereal box sized container they seem to wander out of their nest quite a lot.

Everything I've read suggests you don't want to add too much in the way of things in the outworld, especially when your queens are just founding. It should be low stress and easy to clean/care for. Are you going to be using a test tube as their nest site?

JPSMedeiros

Re: planning a semi-claustral setup.

Post: # 13887Post JPSMedeiros
Sat Oct 15, 2016 7:59 pm

MimzytheBun wrote:It is hard to tell but that looks like quite a large plastic bin. If you've only got your queen right now, I'd recommend using something much smaller along the lines of a Tupperware container. I'm trying to found two semi claustral queens right now and I found even with a cereal box sized container they seem to wander out of their nest quite a lot.

Everything I've read suggests you don't want to add too much in the way of things in the outworld, especially when your queens are just founding. It should be low stress and easy to clean/care for. Are you going to be using a test tube as their nest site?
Thanks for the tips, will try to find a small one then. Yes i'll let the test tube with water there, I think that she will use the test tube as her nest.

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

Re: planning a semi-claustral setup.

Post: # 13890Post idahoantgirl
Sat Oct 15, 2016 9:16 pm

JPSMedeiros wrote:
MimzytheBun wrote:It is hard to tell but that looks like quite a large plastic bin. If you've only got your queen right now, I'd recommend using something much smaller along the lines of a Tupperware container. I'm trying to found two semi claustral queens right now and I found even with a cereal box sized container they seem to wander out of their nest quite a lot.

Everything I've read suggests you don't want to add too much in the way of things in the outworld, especially when your queens are just founding. It should be low stress and easy to clean/care for. Are you going to be using a test tube as their nest site?
Thanks for the tips, will try to find a small one then. Yes i'll let the test tube with water there, I think that she will use the test tube as her nest.
it doesn't matter the size of container. whatever is convenient for u. Think about it. in the wild the queens have a VERY large outworld! it also doesn't matter if you have decorations or not as in the wild queens have plenty of natural "decorations". :D
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

JPSMedeiros

Re: planning a semi-claustral setup.

Post: # 13994Post JPSMedeiros
Mon Oct 17, 2016 9:16 am

Alright, I bought 3 containers like this one(I placed a pen next to it so you guys can see the size):
Image
I'm thinking about leaving the nests inside this big chest so they can have some privacy and my parents don't kill me.
Image

The chest with the containers look like this:
Image

My plan is to place around 0,5 cm of dirt around the container, some little branches and then the test tube with water.
Now my biggest concern is about the baby powder and alcohol, I don't know exactly how to use it, someone can recommend a recipe? (Like 1 spoon of baby powder 2 of alcohol, something like that.) And how to apply it.
I captured some normal worms to feed them while I don't have the mealworms, I hope it is ok to feed them it.

pedrovicentebp

Re: planning a semi-claustral setup.

Post: # 14001Post pedrovicentebp
Mon Oct 17, 2016 12:50 pm

hey you dont need to use baby powder an alcohol if those containers have a lid you can open holes on the lid i used a hot nail to open some holes
but i you want to use baby powder and alcohol you just dont want to use to many alcohol you just want enough so te baby powder will stay on the walls of the conatiners and dont fall i dosnt have a recipe and it is not too good beacuse if the place where you live has a hig level of humidity it will lose its properties

some people use vaseline with oil and fluon i think it is called like that :roll: :roll:

and that outworld its excellent and an extra tip a big part of the huge ants like odontomachus are not good climbing smooth surfaces for example my Odontomachus i have it on a little tuperware and he cant climb it but i just prefer to use the lid for an extra security

i think that your idea of decoration its good

i do not recomend you to put the queens in a place that its to hot or it got direct sunlight because they can get cooked but do not worry about it too much

and i recommend you to freeze those "normal worms" to kill any parasite/aphid that it can have

Good luck :geek:

(sorry if i wrot something bad my native language is spanish)i dont use google traductor :roll:

JPSMedeiros

Re: planning a semi-claustral setup.

Post: # 14002Post JPSMedeiros
Mon Oct 17, 2016 1:04 pm

Thanks for the tips, i think that I'll make some holes on the lid as you said, and place some baby powder just in case, these ants are very big but just in case... haha

pedrovicentebp

Re: planning a semi-claustral setup.

Post: # 14003Post pedrovicentebp
Mon Oct 17, 2016 1:11 pm

JPSMedeiros wrote:Thanks for the tips, i think that I'll make some holes on the lid as you said, and place some baby powder just in case, these ants are very big but just in case... haha
yep better be sure but if you see that they cant climb the plastic you can even leave it with no lid and no baby powder ;) :)thats what i am going to do with my Odontomachus :geek:

JPSMedeiros

Re: planning a semi-claustral setup.

Post: # 14017Post JPSMedeiros
Mon Oct 17, 2016 2:59 pm

pedrovicentebp wrote:
JPSMedeiros wrote:Thanks for the tips, i think that I'll make some holes on the lid as you said, and place some baby powder just in case, these ants are very big but just in case... haha
yep better be sure but if you see that they cant climb the plastic you can even leave it with no lid and no baby powder ;) :)thats what i am going to do with my Odontomachus :geek:
I left only the holes on the lib, since I managed to make very small ones, and my ants don't seem to be able to climb.
I'll post some photos of my progress:

Picked some dirt, rocks and branches:
Image

Organized the stuff:
Image

Inside:
Image

IS THAT TOO MUCH DIRT?(This larva wasn't planned, it's ant food now)
Image

Placed the queens:
Image

One of them is already on the hunt:
Image

The Ant Chest:
Image

pedrovicentebp

Re: planning a semi-claustral setup.

Post: # 14020Post pedrovicentebp
Mon Oct 17, 2016 3:09 pm

Its looks AWESOME almost for me :roll: because here in venezuela geting the outworlds isnt easy because nothing is cheap and good (we have economical crisis but thats off topic) but i think it looks NICE

and yep thats enough dirt :geek:

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