What do you use to feed sugar to your ants?

[loupgaroupgris]

Just wondering what I could use to feed my test tube ants sugar needs. Honey is kind of a pain to put in, wondering if there any other good alternatives.

[WillWithAnts]

Just wondering what I could use to feed my test tube ants sugar needs. Honey is kind of a pain to put in, wondering if there any other good alternatives.

Honey is less of a pain if you smear just a little (less than a drop, I have lost many workers to drowning in honey) on a piece of parchment paper or aluminium foil. It is much easier to clean up this way; you don't want any left-over as it can mold.

[JoeHostile1]

What I do for all my test tube set ups that have workers is attach the test tube to a small container that I use as an outworld. I then make a sugar water test tube and place it in the outworld. I also place their food in there. This way you’re not bothering the queen at all when you feed them.

[WillWithAnts]

Yeah, I like to start an outworld as soon as it is a struggle to keep them all in the test tube during feeding time.

[rlhruza]

I am a noob, so grain of salt...

I am really liking frozen corn kernels. My Tetramorium immigrans workers seem to really like them (even when they are starting to dry out). I know they are not a very picky ant so perhaps it doesn't work for others? Corn is really starchy so I feel like it is an adequate energy source, but every few days I have been offering honey/sugar water just in case.

Maybe the experts know if corn is enough of an energy source?

I like the corn because it has it's own "dish" the shell keeps every thing clean. I still put the kernels on aluminum foil. I also agree with the out world. I just drilled a hole in some cheap plastic tupperware and used plastic tubing to connect them.

[JoeHostile1]

I am a noob, so grain of salt...

I am really liking frozen corn kernels. My Tetramorium immigrans workers seem to really like them (even when they are starting to dry out). I know they are not a very picky ant so perhaps it doesn't work for others? Corn is really starchy so I feel like it is an adequate energy source, but every few days I have been offering honey/sugar water just in case.

Maybe the experts know if corn is enough of an energy source?

I like the corn because it has it's own "dish" the shell keeps every thing clean. I still put the kernels on aluminum foil. I also agree with the out world. I just drilled a hole in some cheap plastic tupperware and used plastic tubing to connect them.

I never considered using corn. After looking up its properties it does seem like a decent ***** food source. But other sources of food are much better.

In 100g of corn there is only 4.5g of sugar. If the point of giving the corn is for sugar it’s pretty pointless because 100g of sugar would be 100g of sugar not 4.5g. I would say the main reason the ants are taking it is for the water content. It’s basically nutritional water for them. 100g of corn does contain 3.4g of protein but 100g of crickets has 12.9g of protein. So it’s actually a very inefficient food source compared to other options. But variety is the spice of life.

Here are the nutrition facts for 3.5 ounces (100 grams) of boiled yellow corn:

Calories: 96
Water: 73%
Protein: 3.4 grams
Carbs: 21 grams
Sugar: 4.5 grams