What are the pros and cons of brood boosting?
Moderator: ooper01
- Ltislander
- Posts: 221
- Joined: Sun Jul 23, 2017 8:25 pm
- Location: Massachusetts
What are the pros and cons of brood boosting?
I have a large tetramorium immagrans nest in my back yard and I was wondering if I could take some pupae? I found a bunch and put the brick back. So should I or should I not? (I only have a queen rn)
Re: What are the pros and cons of brood boosting?
u should.she gonna love or eat them
Keeper of Pheidole Pallidula with about 15-20 workers and bunch of brood ...(2 Queen)
- Ltislander
- Posts: 221
- Joined: Sun Jul 23, 2017 8:25 pm
- Location: Massachusetts
Re: What are the pros and cons of brood boosting?
Well then I hope she accepts them
-
- Posts: 1283
- Joined: Sat Mar 17, 2018 4:22 pm
- Location: South Dakota
Re: What are the pros and cons of brood boosting?
Well, it worked for me.
"God made every kind of wild beasts and every kind of livestock and every kind of creeping things;" (including ants) "and God saw that it was good." Genesis 1:25
-
- Posts: 72
- Joined: Thu Jul 05, 2018 1:06 pm
Re: What are the pros and cons of brood boosting?
Yes. The queens will almost always accept them. I brood boosted a colony 3 times with like 40 pupa in each one. The queen got the chance to start egg laying to match the amount of workers she has.Ltislander wrote: ↑Sun Aug 19, 2018 12:25 amI have a large tetramorium immagrans nest in my back yard and I was wondering if I could take some pupae? I found a bunch and put the brick back. So should I or should I not? (I only have a queen rn)
- Ltislander
- Posts: 221
- Joined: Sun Jul 23, 2017 8:25 pm
- Location: Massachusetts
Re: What are the pros and cons of brood boosting?
Thanks I’m gonna do it tommarrow!
Re: What are the pros and cons of brood boosting?
Hey can one of you explain brood boosting in the way for me? Is it eggs and pupae are okay for larvae will get eaten? Or will larvae also get accepted?
Research is important before during and even after you have established a colony. There is always time to learn and to listen to others experiences. Live by this and your ants will thrive. Fail to do so and your experience may be brief.
Re: What are the pros and cons of brood boosting?
If you give your queen pupa from the same genus but different specie,will the specie be same as the queen?
Keeper of :
Camponotus albosparsus x2
Camponotus Irritans
Hoping for pheidole colony
Camponotus albosparsus x2
Camponotus Irritans
Hoping for pheidole colony
- Ltislander
- Posts: 221
- Joined: Sun Jul 23, 2017 8:25 pm
- Location: Massachusetts
- Batspiderfish
- Posts: 3315
- Joined: Wed Jun 29, 2016 3:47 pm
- Location: Maine
Re: What are the pros and cons of brood boosting?
Beginner ant-keepers should not brood boost.
I say beginner, because there are very few situations in which boosting is beneficial to a colony, and recognizing those situations is the only time to really justify it. Most people only want to brood boost because they are too impatient to let their colonies grow naturally or because they are neglecting their ants and wish to extend the life of the colony for a very short period without figuring out what the problem is.
Brood boosting comes with risks. It is an easy way to introduce mites or other unwanted guests to the habitat of your pet ants. It will potentially destroy a wild colony. It may even harm the health of your captive colony if there is more brood than your ants can care for or clean up after.
Some ant species require brood boosting or callow workers in order to get started, particularly social parasites or ants which may require the workforce of their mother colony (e.g. certain Dolichoderus). Knowing when boosting can actually help a queen is a reward that comes with care and experience.
I say beginner, because there are very few situations in which boosting is beneficial to a colony, and recognizing those situations is the only time to really justify it. Most people only want to brood boost because they are too impatient to let their colonies grow naturally or because they are neglecting their ants and wish to extend the life of the colony for a very short period without figuring out what the problem is.
Brood boosting comes with risks. It is an easy way to introduce mites or other unwanted guests to the habitat of your pet ants. It will potentially destroy a wild colony. It may even harm the health of your captive colony if there is more brood than your ants can care for or clean up after.
Some ant species require brood boosting or callow workers in order to get started, particularly social parasites or ants which may require the workforce of their mother colony (e.g. certain Dolichoderus). Knowing when boosting can actually help a queen is a reward that comes with care and experience.
If you enjoy my expertise and identifications, please do not put wild populations at risk of disease by releasing pet colonies. We are responsible to give our pets the best care we can manage for the rest of their lives.
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 10 guests