Did i house my queens correctly?
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Did i house my queens correctly?
Hi, I found out about the ant keeping just about when the nuptual flights started, so i could not get ready to house the queens in test tube setups. I kept queens, that i caught, in small jars with wet cotton for some days, while i was searching shops in nearby citys, that sell some test tubes. Sadly - could not find any! I decided to make some nests for them by myself .
I used about 0.8x3.2x3.2 inch block of compressed wood chips for my little starter nest. I made a shallow pit in that block and covered it with a plastic, transparent plate. I glued it with a non-toxic glue and poked some tiny holes for the air. I drilled a bigger hole for later-needed tubing and a smaller hole for hydration. I placed some soil in for the queen to feel like at home. For hydration i pulled a string through the hole and placed the other end in a water container higher up than the nest. That worked!
I placed the queen in and she seems happy. The next day i checked on her, and she has borrowed a hole in the soil. I checked her after 3 more days and i saw her with eggs. She moved in really close to the string for the hydration. I don't know what to do. She really likes the moistness, so can i hydrate her a little bit more frequently?
My friend, who keeps an ant queen too, placed some pupae from a nearby ant nest with a fertile queen. Is it bad for the queen? She seems caring about the eggs, she borrowed a hole and placed the pupae with her.
Thanks for your responses
I used about 0.8x3.2x3.2 inch block of compressed wood chips for my little starter nest. I made a shallow pit in that block and covered it with a plastic, transparent plate. I glued it with a non-toxic glue and poked some tiny holes for the air. I drilled a bigger hole for later-needed tubing and a smaller hole for hydration. I placed some soil in for the queen to feel like at home. For hydration i pulled a string through the hole and placed the other end in a water container higher up than the nest. That worked!
I placed the queen in and she seems happy. The next day i checked on her, and she has borrowed a hole in the soil. I checked her after 3 more days and i saw her with eggs. She moved in really close to the string for the hydration. I don't know what to do. She really likes the moistness, so can i hydrate her a little bit more frequently?
My friend, who keeps an ant queen too, placed some pupae from a nearby ant nest with a fertile queen. Is it bad for the queen? She seems caring about the eggs, she borrowed a hole and placed the pupae with her.
Thanks for your responses
Re: Did i house my queens correctly?
Can you show us some pictures? It's hard to imagine what you're describing.
Re: Did i house my queens correctly?
Sorry, i have only a phone camera, but...MCWren wrote:Can you show us some pictures? It's hard to imagine what you're describing.
Here are the picures:
This is the nest, that i house 1 of my queens in.
This is the hydration system, that i use for making my nest moist.
I know, they are not beautiful.
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Re: Did i house my queens correctly?
Are you housing a carpenter ant species or one that is known to live in wood? This is definitely an unconventional way to house queens so perhaps it may be hard for others here to give advice on whether this can work or not. Hopefully someone with experience with a similar nest can help!
Ant Love Forever.
Re: Did i house my queens correctly?
No, the species i caught are not living in wood. Can that be a big problem? Can they die, if i house them like this? you made me kinda scared now.AntsCanada wrote:Are you housing a carpenter ant species or one that is known to live in wood? This is definitely an unconventional way to house queens so perhaps it may be hard for others here to give advice on whether this can work or not. Hopefully someone with experience with a similar nest can help!
Re: Did i house my queens correctly?
No, they should be fine. That's a cool setup, hopefully it works. Good luck!
Re: Did i house my queens correctly?
Can you please post some pics of the species so it can be identified.EdgarFromLatvia wrote:No, the species i caught are not living in wood. Can that be a big problem? Can they die, if i house them like this? you made me kinda scared now.AntsCanada wrote:Are you housing a carpenter ant species or one that is known to live in wood? This is definitely an unconventional way to house queens so perhaps it may be hard for others here to give advice on whether this can work or not. Hopefully someone with experience with a similar nest can help!
With all the things ants can do, you wonder, who rules the planet
Keeper of:
Camponotus Pennsylvanicus
Pheidole sp.
Keeper of:
Camponotus Pennsylvanicus
Pheidole sp.
Re: Did i house my queens correctly?
I posted the queen pictures in the "Queen ID" section:AntsRule wrote:Can you please post some pics of the species so it can be identified.EdgarFromLatvia wrote:No, the species i caught are not living in wood. Can that be a big problem? Can they die, if i house them like this? you made me kinda scared now.AntsCanada wrote:Are you housing a carpenter ant species or one that is known to live in wood? This is definitely an unconventional way to house queens so perhaps it may be hard for others here to give advice on whether this can work or not. Hopefully someone with experience with a similar nest can help!
viewtopic.php?f=48&t=1549
Re: Did i house my queens correctly?
Thanks, it kind of works. I have noticed some larvae in the nest. In the ant ID section i have placed a post, where you can see the ant. I noticed the larvae only when looking at the picture.MCWren wrote:No, they should be fine. That's a cool setup, hopefully it works. Good luck!
viewtopic.php?f=48&t=1549
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