24 replies to this topic

[Spazmops]

 

 

That sounds like a big deal.

Lol well I don’t have them in my yard so...

Put the extra colonies for sale on GAN. You’ll sell them in no time. I sold a queen and nanitics for $100, no joke.

I’ll try that, but there aren’t that many ant keepers out here. The GAN page for Colorado is flooded with tetramorium colonies.

On the old CO anting thread it seems like that’s all they ever found.

 

I know, it’s odd. I’ve only been seriously antkeeping for a few months and I’ve found Pogonomyrmex occidentalis, Lasius sp., Formica fusca group, and Dorymyrmex smithi.

[Spazmops]

Update 9/7/2020

I released my younger colonies in my yard. The colony I kept is doing great, although there really isn’t much to say about them. They are getting bolder though, one actually escaped when I was feeding them yesterday. In the past they’ve just panicked and hid under the queen.

[Spazmops]

Update 10/15/2020

They've kept growing and trying to escape. Their test tube ran dry, so I made a tubs &  tubes setup for them. So far they've ignored the tubes entirely, choosing to crawl around under the paper towel I put down as a kind of lazy substrate. The bottom of the tub is warped, so I would have had to put down so much sand they would just nest in it (I think). If they try to move in under the paper towel, I'll have to change it out for something else. 

[Spazmops]

Wow, I didn't realize how long I went without updating this. Apologies. 

 

Update March 1st, 2021

So the tubs and tubes setup lasted 3 days. It was a doomed venture from the start. I decided to show them more appreciation and moved them into a minihearth, where they've been thriving. Based off of the brood pile, they'll double in size in a few days. I've been feeding them as much as they can eat and heating them because I want them to explode in population, and it looks like my efforts are starting to pay off. They have 10-12 workers and an almost equal number of pupae. This is the larger of 2 brood piles, sorted by eggs and microlarvae and pupae with large larvae.

Edited by Spazmops, March 1 2021 - 12:20 PM.

[Canadant]

Cool. I'm raising tetramorium at the moment too. They're tough (as a species) and always looking for action. They grow fast too. Best of all, they don't seem to need a ton of special attention. Just feed them. Their diet is incredibly varied. You'll enjoy them.