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myrmica not feeding


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7 replies to this topic

#1 Offline klawfran3 - Posted April 15 2017 - 7:52 AM

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My Myrmica colony has refused to eat anything I have offered them. I have offered:

-cut up waxworms

-cut up beetle larvae

-crushed seeds (miller, rapeseed)

-cheezit crackers

-honey water

-pure honey

-chicken

-oats

-fish food

Nothing has been taken, eaten, or moved, and they haven't left their test tube to the outworld in days. ay food I put in the test tube is taken out and dumped. What can I do to get them to eat? The brood pile is shrinking and I don't want them to die out.


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#2 Offline Canadian anter - Posted April 15 2017 - 10:59 AM

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I sometimes find that my myrmica don't appreciate dead foods. The ants seem to prefer softer bodied insects too. I sometimes have to force live foods into the nest for them to eat it. The food doesn't have to be very alive. Just enough to make them struggle
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#3 Offline Batspiderfish - Posted April 15 2017 - 5:17 PM

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My Myrmica accept frozen Drosophila.


If you've enjoyed using my expertise and identifications, please do not create undue ecological risk by releasing your ants. The environment which we keep our pet insects is alien and oftentimes unsanitary, so ensure that wild populations stay safe by giving your ants the best care you can manage for the rest of their lives, as we must do with any other pet.

 

Exotic ants are for those who think that vibrant diversity is something you need to pay money to see. It is illegal to transport live ants across state lines.

 

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#4 Offline klawfran3 - Posted April 15 2017 - 7:26 PM

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tried offering a mostly dead fly, they all evacuated the nest and set up their brood in a corner of the outworld. I removed the fly and jusst shined a bright light on them until they went back in. It seems like they're just not going to feed at this point


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#5 Offline Batspiderfish - Posted April 15 2017 - 8:23 PM

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Did you shove it into their tube or something? What kind of fly was it? If was any different from a dead vinegar fly, then the results probably won't be the same.


Edited by Batspiderfish, April 15 2017 - 8:25 PM.

If you've enjoyed using my expertise and identifications, please do not create undue ecological risk by releasing your ants. The environment which we keep our pet insects is alien and oftentimes unsanitary, so ensure that wild populations stay safe by giving your ants the best care you can manage for the rest of their lives, as we must do with any other pet.

 

Exotic ants are for those who think that vibrant diversity is something you need to pay money to see. It is illegal to transport live ants across state lines.

 

----

Black lives still matter.


#6 Offline MichiganAnts - Posted April 15 2017 - 9:41 PM

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try fruit flies. i gave mine some and they loved them


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#7 Offline klawfran3 - Posted April 15 2017 - 9:45 PM

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Did you shove it into their tube or something? What kind of fly was it? If was any different from a dead vinegar fly, then the results probably won't be the same.

I lightly put it into the end of the tube, definitely didn't just shove it in there. I guess the fact that it was twitching and smelled weird made them panic and evacuate.

The thing is that the town I live in does not have any pet shops where I can get fruit flies, and it is too cold for them here at this time. I live in Wyoming. It's 45 F until May. I'll attempt to feed them other small insects I find but it doesn't seem like things are working out. I'll see if I can find some gnats or midges near the local stream, I know stoneflies and mayflies are out but I don't know if the ants will eat them.


Edited by klawfran3, April 15 2017 - 9:46 PM.

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#8 Offline AntswerMe - Posted April 23 2017 - 8:39 AM

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What have they eaten before? Are they still alive?




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