What else do ants forage for?

General Off Topic Chat and Discussions

Moderator: ooper01

Post Reply
MonsterBro1
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Jul 16, 2018 3:31 am

What else do ants forage for?

Post: # 51217Post MonsterBro1
Sat Sep 22, 2018 8:32 am

Ive gotten a colony of camponotus fallax, they are still in a testube. However, even though they have honey, they keep clawing at the cotton. Is there something that i am forgetting? they are only ten workers strong, so i dont think theyre ready for a cricket leg.

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

Re: What else do ants forage for?

Post: # 51223Post idahoantgirl
Sat Sep 22, 2018 9:31 am

Never feed your ants in the tube. This causes stress and mold outbreaks. Use the drinking straw method. Take a one inch section of drinking straw and wedge it between the side of the tube and the exit cotton. this provides a cozy tunnel for your ants. Then place the whole setup in an outworld and only feed them in the outworld. if they are hungry, they will forage. At this point, you should provide them with a cricket leg, or preferably, a fruit fly.
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

AntsDakota
Posts: 1283
Joined: Sat Mar 17, 2018 4:22 pm
Location: South Dakota

Re: What else do ants forage for?

Post: # 51247Post AntsDakota
Sat Sep 22, 2018 6:31 pm

MonsterBro1 wrote:
Sat Sep 22, 2018 8:32 am
Ive gotten a colony of camponotus fallax, they are still in a testube. However, even though they have honey, they keep clawing at the cotton. Is there something that i am forgetting? they are only ten workers strong, so i dont think theyre ready for a cricket leg.
10 workers is ready for a cricket leg in my books.
"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

JoeHostile1
Posts: 409
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2018 6:51 am
Location: Canada
Contact:

Re: What else do ants forage for?

Post: # 51345Post JoeHostile1
Mon Sep 24, 2018 11:27 am

MonsterBro1 wrote:
Sat Sep 22, 2018 8:32 am
Ive gotten a colony of camponotus fallax, they are still in a testube. However, even though they have honey, they keep clawing at the cotton. Is there something that i am forgetting? they are only ten workers strong, so i dont think theyre ready for a cricket leg.
i didn’t see that you said you providing honey at first. If the ants are trying that hard to get out then I would give them an outworld to forage and start providing protein.
Keeping:
Tetramorium immigrans * Lasius Neoniger * Lasius Claviger * Messor Aciculatus * Myrmica Rubra * Camponotus Novaeboracensis * Camponotus Turkastanus * Pheidole Pallidula

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSfFtn6RegZ3F1NdS1g08NA

Hunter36o
Posts: 376
Joined: Fri Jun 15, 2018 9:57 am
Location: Dublin, Ireland

Re: What else do ants forage for?

Post: # 54719Post Hunter36o
Tue Dec 11, 2018 7:33 am

3-5 days after your first worker arrives you should consider feeding any form of protein. At this point the queen is starving and her reserves are almost gone. She has been feeding her young since they hatch from an egg. That one worker, once completely hardens has one big job. Feed mammy ASAP.

I have a question on the same topic of this but mine differs somewhat. I a tube and AC tube portal and I have a possible Rubra founding stage colony inside. One worker as mentioned in my signature. However they are gut loaded on legs, they mince through them, one worker and one queen go through one leg in two days. Now I've decided to change their feed as a result of this to an adult cricket leg. And this has slowed down their need for fresh food. But I noticed the work was forging even though she had fresh food, both sugar and protein. Yet she is actively forging for something. Now the test tube is not AC. Would it be possible the worker is looking for more space? The total count is 1 queen, 1 worker, 3 larvae and 1 pupae.

I mean this is winter season, why is she this active? I did mention in a different post that the hibernation location had been compromised and the current temp rage, although lower then normal it is still above ideal. All my Lasius ants have completely slowed down and are practically inactive. Why is my Myrmica still forging and what could they be looking for if they have food?
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.

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 11 guests