How fast do Crickets mould?

[harvesterant]

I am going away for a week, leaving my ants. Will crickets mould in that time, and would the ants eat moldy crickets if they do mold? Is it safe ants like this, or should I find another protein source?

[Helianthus]

How big is your colony and what species? If it is a large colony, then they might eat up most of the cricket and dump the harder pieces in a trash pile. I wouldn't worry about mold too much in one week. Just make sure they have a big enough out world, so they can dump their trash outside of the nest. Some species are better at keeping a clean nest than others, though.

[harvesterant]

Okay, thank you. The colony is very small, approximately 15 workers, so I would not expect them to eat the cricket in one week. I'll just take the remains out later. Thank you for replying.