I am a beginner give me colony and terrarium tips

[Antman12]

Hello, I am a young teen who is going to get an ant colony. Please give me tips for easy to take care of ants with easy to make terrariums that are secure. My mom is worried that they will escape in the house. I know some natural barriers but not a ton. Please give me some tips.

[antperson24]

Hello, I am a young teen who is going to get an ant colony. Please give me tips for easy to take care of ants with easy to make terrariums that are secure. My mom is worried that they will escape in the house. I know some natural barriers but not a ton. Please give me some tips.

First of all, you will likely not be able to move your colony into a terrarium until a year or more after the queens first workers arrive. The best barrier in my opinion is baby powder mixed with rubbing alcohol then painted to the glass, but this does not work with some species make sure you do research about the species you catch/buy. Here is a video that is helpful for creating a terrarium: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4dL36YIvjU&ab_channel=AntsScandinavia Also, what country do you live in? If you have any further questions, I will be glad to answer them to the best of my ability.

[Antman12]

I live in Canada and yes am aware of the terrarium you told me about but I am not sure what colony I’m gonna get yet maybe fire ants. I hope to get a Queen from my yard.
But thank you for telling me this if you or anyone else could give me some really good tips for when the ant colony gets bigger, that would be a huge help.

[antperson24]

I live in Canada and I am aware with the terrarium thing you told me about but I am not sure what colony I’m gonna get yet maybe fire ants.
But thank you for telling me this if you know anyone who could give me some really good tips for when the air collie gets bigger, that would be a huge help.

I would highly recommend you do not buy fire ants, as they can become extremely invasive and kill off native species, also, they are a bad beginner species. Well, as far as when your colony gets bigger, if you want them to continue to grow, you will need to feed them lots of food. If you want to regulate their size, you can do this by feeding the same amount of food once they have reached the desired size.

[Antman12]

I have Fire ants in my area actually, Maybe not, their orange and have really painful stingers. I tend to look for bugs to feed the ants so feeding them is not a problem for me. Unless it’s the wrong kind of bug. I heard German cockroaches are a good starter food. Is that true? Or is there a different starting food like sugar water or sweet jelly? Can someone help me with starting ants.

[antperson24]

I have Fire ants in my area actually, Maybe not, their orange and have really painful stingers. I tend to look for bugs to feed the ants so feeding them is not a problem for me. Unless it’s the wrong kind of bug. I heard German cockroaches are a good starter food. Is that true? Or is there a different starting food like sugar water or sweet jelly? Can someone help me with starting ants.

Oh, you would be referring to Myrmica, they are sometimes called fire ants, but are native. True fire ants are a few species from the genus Solenopsis mostly invicta. Myrmica is a cool genus, but I do not recommend it for a beginner, Camponotus or Tetramorium would both be great starter species. Honestly, any insect you can find should be good, except for very bright red ones, which are usually poisonous. You will also need to provide a sugar source, honey or sugar water are the best.

[Antlover41157]

I have Fire ants in my area actually, Maybe not, their orange and have really painful stingers. I tend to look for bugs to feed the ants so feeding them is not a problem for me. Unless it’s the wrong kind of bug. I heard German cockroaches are a good starter food. Is that true? Or is there a different starting food like sugar water or sweet jelly? Can someone help me with starting ants.

Oh, you would be referring to Myrmica, they are sometimes called fire ants, but are native. True fire ants are a few species from the genus Solenopsis mostly invicta. Myrmica is a cool genus, but I do not recommend it for a beginner, Camponotus or Tetramorium would both be great starter species. Honestly, any insect you can find should be good, except for very bright red ones, which are usually poisonous. You will also need to provide a sugar source, honey or sugar water are the best.

I agree with Tetramorium, they're very fast growing and eats everything, perfect for terrariums.

[antperson24]

I have Fire ants in my area actually, Maybe not, their orange and have really painful stingers. I tend to look for bugs to feed the ants so feeding them is not a problem for me. Unless it’s the wrong kind of bug. I heard German cockroaches are a good starter food. Is that true? Or is there a different starting food like sugar water or sweet jelly? Can someone help me with starting ants.

Oh, you would be referring to Myrmica, they are sometimes called fire ants, but are native. True fire ants are a few species from the genus Solenopsis mostly invicta. Myrmica is a cool genus, but I do not recommend it for a beginner, Camponotus or Tetramorium would both be great starter species. Honestly, any insect you can find should be good, except for very bright red ones, which are usually poisonous. You will also need to provide a sugar source, honey or sugar water are the best.

I agree with Tetramorium, they're very fast growing and eats everything, perfect for terrariums.

Definitely great in terrariums! I have a six month old, five hundred worker Tetramorium immigrans colony in a terrarium I made for them, and they love it!

[Antman12]

Thanks for the info this will help a ton

[Antman12]

Is there any more information you can share with me? Like another really good start a colony because my mom does not want carpenter ants in the house.