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Camponotus care


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9 replies to this topic

#1 Offline eclaires - Posted January 27 2023 - 4:30 AM

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Hi! I just have a few questions regarding keeping Camponotus ants. They're a tropical species of Camponotus ant that are 11 weeks old and currently at 10 workers with a couple of eggs and larvae (more larvae of different stages). 

 

1. Are ants able to eat solids, such as cooked meat? or something dry like beef jerky? (as temporary replacements from the regular mealworms and crickets)
2. Is there a specific time when queen ants lay eggs, perhaps when there is a high protein supply? (what causes them to lay more?) 
3. Since they're in a test tube set-up how often should honey be given and cleaned out? 
4. Do you have any recommendations on how to clean out old test tubes? (and how to take out the cotton blocking the water? I find it really hard to pull out the cotton) 

 

Thank you so much everyone! :D 

 



#2 Offline antsriondel - Posted January 27 2023 - 7:07 AM

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Hi! I just have a few questions regarding keeping Camponotus ants. They're a tropical species of Camponotus ant that are 11 weeks old and currently at 10 workers with a couple of eggs and larvae (more larvae of different stages). 

 

1. Are ants able to eat solids, such as cooked meat? or something dry like beef jerky? (as temporary replacements from the regular mealworms and crickets)
2. Is there a specific time when queen ants lay eggs, perhaps when there is a high protein supply? (what causes them to lay more?) 
3. Since they're in a test tube set-up how often should honey be given and cleaned out? 
4. Do you have any recommendations on how to clean out old test tubes? (and how to take out the cotton blocking the water? I find it really hard to pull out the cotton) 

 

Thank you so much everyone! :D 

 

Hi! To answer your questions, Ants are able to eat solid foods but I would recommend feeding them somewhat of softer foods, like scrambled eggs. It should take her a week to lay her first eggs, but these take a while to develop but if you want to speed it up I would recommend using a heating cable. Every once a week depending on when they finish it. I use a long wooden skewer, but you can buy something more professional if you want.



#3 Offline Hothkinstroy - Posted January 28 2023 - 1:20 PM

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Hi! I just have a few questions regarding keeping Camponotus ants. They're a tropical species of Camponotus ant that are 11 weeks old and currently at 10 workers with a couple of eggs and larvae (more larvae of different stages). 

 

1. Are ants able to eat solids, such as cooked meat? or something dry like beef jerky? (as temporary replacements from the regular mealworms and crickets)
2. Is there a specific time when queen ants lay eggs, perhaps when there is a high protein supply? (what causes them to lay more?) 
3. Since they're in a test tube set-up how often should honey be given and cleaned out? 
4. Do you have any recommendations on how to clean out old test tubes? (and how to take out the cotton blocking the water? I find it really hard to pull out the cotton) 

 

Thank you so much everyone! :D 

 

To answer your questions:

Q: Are ants able to eat solids, such as cooked meat? or something dry like beef jerky? (as temporary replacements from the regular mealworms and crickets)

A: Yes they are capable of eating things such as chicken, beef, steak, etc. However, It should not be a staple food though due to the preservatives. As for dry foods, the ants will not take too much interest in it. UNLESS they are starving, they will see the jerky as a brittle block not ideal for consumption. Ants need their juices.

 

Q: Is there a specific time when queen ants lay eggs, perhaps when there is a high protein supply? (what causes them to lay more?) 

A: Yes, queens don't just lay eggs for no reason. In terms of protein; the colony knows how much food there is. If food is stable and increasing, the queen may lay more eggs, and vice versa. Heat, nesting, vibrations, etc also all have a role on when the queen decides to lay eggs. As for a specific time to lay eggs, it mostly depends on when the species has a nuptial flight and where the species is. For example some queens might wait till after diapause to begin laying eggs. Your Camponotus queen is exotic, however, so she won't go through diapause.

 

Q: Since they're in a test tube set-up how often should honey be given and cleaned out? 
A: It depends on preservatives, how large the colony is, how clean the tube is, etc. However, honey dries out after only a couple of days and past that can not be consumed. So clean the tube every couple of days. I feed my ants honey water every few days on a piece of aluminum foil which I grab with tweezers after a couple of days. Don't use 100% honey btw, use a 50% Honey 50% Water mixture and serve it on a piece of aluminum foil.

 

Q: Do you have any recommendations on how to clean out old test tubes? (and how to take out the cotton blocking the water? I find it really hard to pull out the cotton) 
A: There are a couple different ways for cleaning out tubes, but I recommend filling a tub with soapy water and letting the tubes sit for an hour or two. As for getting the cotton block out of the tube, before I got tweezers, I used a chopstick or back end of a spoon to wedge and pull it out. You can also use scissors if you have a small enough pair that will fit in a test tube.

 

Hope this helps!


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#4 Offline ANTdrew - Posted January 28 2023 - 3:06 PM

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Ants primarily feed on liquid foods. If you want your ants to thrive, a varied diet of insect body fluids (hemolymph) is the most important thing to feed them. Everything else is merely a supplement, unless you’re keeping seed eating ants like Pogonomyrmex.
"The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer." Prov. 30:25
Keep ordinary ants in extraordinary ways.

#5 Offline eclaires - Posted January 29 2023 - 4:33 AM

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Thank you so much everyone! 



#6 Offline antperson24 - Posted February 2 2023 - 9:33 AM

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Hi! I just have a few questions regarding keeping Camponotus ants. They're a tropical species of Camponotus ant that are 11 weeks old and currently at 10 workers with a couple of eggs and larvae (more larvae of different stages). 

 

1. Are ants able to eat solids, such as cooked meat? or something dry like beef jerky? (as temporary replacements from the regular mealworms and crickets)
2. Is there a specific time when queen ants lay eggs, perhaps when there is a high protein supply? (what causes them to lay more?) 
3. Since they're in a test tube set-up how often should honey be given and cleaned out? 
4. Do you have any recommendations on how to clean out old test tubes? (and how to take out the cotton blocking the water? I find it really hard to pull out the cotton) 

 

Thank you so much everyone! :D 

 

As far as question one goes, I feed my C. novaeboracensis colony chicken meat regularly, and they like it a lot.


 Why keep ants that aren't found in your yard?

There are so many fascinating ants right were you live!

I disagree with the keeping/buying of ants that are not found in your area.

 


#7 Offline AntsCali098 - Posted February 2 2023 - 10:05 AM

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Hi! I just have a few questions regarding keeping Camponotus ants. They're a tropical species of Camponotus ant that are 11 weeks old and currently at 10 workers with a couple of eggs and larvae (more larvae of different stages). 

 

1. Are ants able to eat solids, such as cooked meat? or something dry like beef jerky? (as temporary replacements from the regular mealworms and crickets)
2. Is there a specific time when queen ants lay eggs, perhaps when there is a high protein supply? (what causes them to lay more?) 
3. Since they're in a test tube set-up how often should honey be given and cleaned out? 
4. Do you have any recommendations on how to clean out old test tubes? (and how to take out the cotton blocking the water? I find it really hard to pull out the cotton) 

 

Thank you so much everyone! :D 

 

To answer your questions:

Q: Are ants able to eat solids, such as cooked meat? or something dry like beef jerky? (as temporary replacements from the regular mealworms and crickets)

A: Yes they are capable of eating things such as chicken, beef, steak, etc. However, It should not be a staple food though due to the preservatives. As for dry foods, the ants will not take too much interest in it. UNLESS they are starving, they will see the jerky as a brittle block not ideal for consumption. Ants need their juices.

 

Q: Is there a specific time when queen ants lay eggs, perhaps when there is a high protein supply? (what causes them to lay more?) 

A: Yes, queens don't just lay eggs for no reason. In terms of protein; the colony knows how much food there is. If food is stable and increasing, the queen may lay more eggs, and vice versa. Heat, nesting, vibrations, etc also all have a role on when the queen decides to lay eggs. As for a specific time to lay eggs, it mostly depends on when the species has a nuptial flight and where the species is. For example some queens might wait till after diapause to begin laying eggs. Your Camponotus queen is exotic, however, so she won't go through diapause.

 

Q: Since they're in a test tube set-up how often should honey be given and cleaned out? 
A: It depends on preservatives, how large the colony is, how clean the tube is, etc. However, honey dries out after only a couple of days and past that can not be consumed. So clean the tube every couple of days. I feed my ants honey water every few days on a piece of aluminum foil which I grab with tweezers after a couple of days. Don't use 100% honey btw, use a 50% Honey 50% Water mixture and serve it on a piece of aluminum foil.

 

Q: Do you have any recommendations on how to clean out old test tubes? (and how to take out the cotton blocking the water? I find it really hard to pull out the cotton) 
A: There are a couple different ways for cleaning out tubes, but I recommend filling a tub with soapy water and letting the tubes sit for an hour or two. As for getting the cotton block out of the tube, before I got tweezers, I used a chopstick or back end of a spoon to wedge and pull it out. You can also use scissors if you have a small enough pair that will fit in a test tube.

 

Hope this helps!

 

Great info, but I think 100% honey is fine. A lot of people dilute it, but it only takes a bit of carbs out. It's fine to feed 100% honey, some people like to dilute it, the keeper's choice.


Interested buying in ants? Feel free to check out my shop

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Atta sp (wish they were in CA), Crematogaster cerasi, Most Pheidole species

 

 


#8 Offline ANTS_678 - Posted February 6 2023 - 10:46 PM

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Hi! I just have a few questions regarding keeping Camponotus ants. They're a tropical species of Camponotus ant that are 11 weeks old and currently at 10 workers with a couple of eggs and larvae (more larvae of different stages). 

 

1. Are ants able to eat solids, such as cooked meat? or something dry like beef jerky? (as temporary replacements from the regular mealworms and crickets)
2. Is there a specific time when queen ants lay eggs, perhaps when there is a high protein supply? (what causes them to lay more?) 
3. Since they're in a test tube set-up how often should honey be given and cleaned out? 
4. Do you have any recommendations on how to clean out old test tubes? (and how to take out the cotton blocking the water? I find it really hard to pull out the cotton) 

 

Thank you so much everyone! :D 

 

Cooked meat does work, and so does boiled white eggs and boiled chicken. Do not feed your ants citrus fruits such as Lemons, Grapes, Orange etc though. Ants are very sensitive to those kind of solid food and will have a serious reaction and death.



#9 Offline ConcordAntman - Posted February 10 2023 - 1:04 PM

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Just a word on 100% honey. One problem I’ve had (and possibly a reason for diluting honey) is the viscosity of the honey can trap and kill aggressive eaters. For that reason, I avoid it and use a 3:1 water/sugar mixture (essentially hummingbird nectar).

 

Camponotus sp are fully claustral which means the newly mated queen doesn’t forage for herself and will gain nourishment from breaking down her flight muscles. Her first real meal will come from her first batch of workers (nanitics) foraging for her. For the most part, workers can manage a primarily carbohydrate diet (sugar water or honey) but egg laying is protein intensive so the queen will need a protein souce. You can supply with chicken or scrambled egg. Keep in mind, Camponotus sp are carnivorous so other insects are on the menu! You can find other threads discussing the risks and merits of fresh caught vs store/farm bought but if you go the live feeding route be prepared to freeze and thaw your feeder insects to limit the potential for mite infestation. Just my two cents. Good luck!



#10 Offline antperson24 - Posted February 10 2023 - 4:02 PM

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My C. novaeboracensis colony actually won't eat honey anymore! I say anymore because they used to, but then I started feeding them sugar water, and ever since they don't even touch any other sugar source.   


 Why keep ants that aren't found in your yard?

There are so many fascinating ants right were you live!

I disagree with the keeping/buying of ants that are not found in your area.

 





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