250 replies to this topic

[Ernteameise]

You might not believe this, but since they have some really huge larvae growing, they actually opened up a THIRD chamber for brood in the nest.

It is great to watch them grow so fast, now that they have some summer heat to assist them.

They also got a nice big protein dinner to support those growing larvae (plus some cherry which the workers like to lick from).

 

I love these girls.

There is always something going on, they keep themselves busy and they put up with a beginner like me and my food experiments.

 

 

[Jonathan5608]

Those majors are pretty

[BleepingBleepers]

Yeah, there's so many different sizes for the workers in your colony. Like even the Majors, some are smaller, some are HUGE  

 

Can't wait till my ants get majors, wanna handle a big ant so bad! (don't ask what's wrong with me, I wouldn't know where to start)

[Ernteameise]

I agree, these majors with their attractive reddish heads was one of the deciding factors why I started keeping these ants.

 

Here are a few more pictures of the girls trying to transport a cricket and stuff it into the plastic tube leading to the nest.

It took them a while to get there.

It was very fun to watch.

And that major at the top right at the entrance looks as if she is masterminding the whole operation.

 

"Heave ho!"

 

 

 

[Ernteameise]

Look at these freshly hatched new majors and some absolutely huge larvae!

These new majors have massive heads.

 

 

[ANTdrew]

So cool!

[Ernteameise]

Right now discussing with Mack from Tarheel Ants about a bigger custom nest for this colony, which will replace the acrylic nest.

He apologized that I had to wait so long for an answer ( he is VERY busy) but he came back to me and had the first ideas.

Not have heard back from him the past couple of days, but since it is summer time, he must be absolutely swamped with requests.

I do not think it is that urgent for my girls and they can wait a couple of months.

And I do not want to rush this, I want a great comfortable nest for my girls.

My only request was that it had to fit into the shelving with my AntCube and that I will be able to have them connected (since that is their known outworld).

I am looking forward to what we will come up with!

Edited by Ernteameise, July 15 2023 - 9:58 AM.

[BleepingBleepers]

 

... ( he is VERY busy) ...

Not have heard back from him the past couple of days, but since it is summer time, he must be absolutely swamped with requests.

*Cough cough* I MIGHT...or might not be part of the reason , went on a buying spree at his site, CC should've been sent right to the shredders afterward  

2nd week waiting, anxiety going up. Heard it takes 2-3 weeks for Formicariums.

But he's such a nice person to deal with, for sure he's probably just super busy. I think he works like 7 days a week to late hours too.

 

Hope you get your stuff. Oh your location is in Germany too, you don't ever have issues with it going through customs?

Do you have any drawn out design and dimensions for the nest you have in mind? I find it kinda fun to kinda draw it out visually, think it makes it more clearer to present.

Curious on what you guys come up with too!

[Ernteameise]

 

 

... ( he is VERY busy) ...

Not have heard back from him the past couple of days, but since it is summer time, he must be absolutely swamped with requests.

*Cough cough* I MIGHT...or might not be part of the reason , went on a buying spree at his site, CC should've been sent right to the shredders afterward  

2nd week waiting, anxiety going up. Heard it takes 2-3 weeks for Formicariums.

But he's such a nice person to deal with, for sure he's probably just super busy. I think he works like 7 days a week to late hours too.

 

Hope you get your stuff. Oh your location is in Germany too, you don't ever have issues with it going through customs?

Do you have any drawn out design and dimensions for the nest you have in mind? I find it kinda fun to kinda draw it out visually, think it makes it more clearer to present.

Curious on what you guys come up with too!

 

Right, now I know who to blame....

 

I had ordered one of the ready to ship nests a few weeks ago, and it arrived here in Germany save and sound.

And yes, it was picked out by customs, and was stuck there for a few days.

I think customs just had no idea what to make of this!

But the customs fee I had to pay was much less than I had feared and was just 14 Euro.

 

(you can find a report and unpacking pictures here: https://www.formicul...ums/?hl=tarheel )

 

So I am pretty confident that the new custom nest will also arrive here without larger problems.

The only thing you need is patience.

 

Yes, I actually did a (pretty bad) drawing of what I had in mind and I also sent a ton of pictures of my current setup and how I wanted everything to be arranged.

I am very happy with the communication and Mack actually send me an email at the start that he is sorry but I had to wait a bit for a more elaborate answer.

Yes, he seems to be a very nice and very competent person.

 

Since I am already ordering a custom nest, I will also buy a plain XL Mini Hearth for the Lasius niger queen (and soon colony) which I collected from nuptial flights last week. She already has laid a ton of eggs, so she sooner or later will need a cozy home.

I fell in love with these nests, if I am totally honest.

[BleepingBleepers]

^ Tell the customs people that it's definitely NOT some kind of bomb (or espionage hardware) making kit and give them a nervous laugh while avoiding eye contact

 

I only dealt with customs one time when I bought my Unicycle from Canada (I'm in the U.S.). I think the first one I bought it, I didn't have issues but the second one was like "guys...what the blank..." when I saw the extra fees. Like I literally bought it from Canada because it was cheaper and the fees definitely made an impact.

 

Anyhow, talking to you, now I'm even more pumped to get it.

Reading  your other thread and people's reply about it, very interesting! Thanks for the link. I also saw some video reviews of folks comparing different formicariums. I personally chose THA because it had a more Earthy, natural look to them not to mention I prefer giving business to sellers like Mack, rarely ever meet such a helpful person like that. I saw some super fancy but also expensive formicariums carved out of wood, think they were located in Europe somewhere. However, I think my final Formicariums, I will design and make it myself. Ever consider that? The DIY approach? Probably a few years down the line, I want a top down view, it looks like a lot of fun to watch them so close up, not to mention taking pictures of them would be easier and clearer too. OOOO can't wait!

Edited by BleepingBleepers, July 15 2023 - 11:02 AM.

[Ernteameise]

^ Tell the customs people that it's definitely NOT some kind of bomb (or espionage hardware) making kit and give them a nervous laugh while avoiding eye contact
 
I only dealt with customs one time when I bought my Unicycle from Canada (I'm in the U.S.). I think the first one I bought it, I didn't have issues but the second one was like "guys...what the blank..." when I saw the extra fees. Like I literally bought it from Canada because it was cheaper and the fees definitely made an impact.
 
Anyhow, talking to you, now I'm even more pumped to get it.
Reading  your other thread and people's reply about it, very interesting! Thanks for the link. I also saw some video reviews of folks comparing different formicariums. I personally chose THA because it had a more Earthy, natural look to them not to mention I prefer giving business to sellers like Mack, rarely ever meet such a helpful person like that. I saw some super fancy but also expensive formicariums carved out of wood, think they were located in Europe somewhere. However, I think my final Formicariums, I will design and make it myself. Ever consider that? The DIY approach? Probably a few years down the line, I want a top down view, it looks like a lot of fun to watch them so close up, not to mention taking pictures of them would be easier and clearer too. OOOO can't wait!

Make sure you share pictures of your new nests with us in your journals!
I always love to see other people‘ s setups and ideas.

Haha, well, the guy with the fancy wood nests is Foranto from Poland. He is my go- to supplier for Sunburst nectar, because he buys bulk and can sell it cheaper than anyone else in Europe. I also got a beautiful small wooden starter nest from him, originally planned for my Temnothorax colony ( which completely ignored it). If you want to have a look, it is in my „Walnut Empire“ Temnothorax journal.
His nests are also absolutely stunning works of art, and he also is a nice and helpful guy with great customer service and fast delivery times (at least from Poland to Germany). I can also very much recommend him, if you ever want to keep a wood loving species and are looking for a stunning center piece for your collection!

Well, in my youth I actually made my own large Formicarium and out world for a Formica polyctena wood ant colony myself, with the help of my grandpa and dad. But- I just do have two left hands and I am not very good at that sort of thing. Yes, I produced something serviceable and useable, but it was far from pretty.
So I actually am not ashamed to buy quality work from good craftsmen who can do beautiful work, even if it costs a bit of money.
I only have a small flat, and my animals are the centre of my living room- my fish tanks sit where other people have their TV and this will also be where my smaller THA nests will be sitting when the colonies are big enough to move in. For my Messor colony, I bought a shelf and installed LED lights, I want all of this to look pretty and something I can enjoy looking at when I come home from my stressful day job. No room for a bad attempt by me constructing something ugly but serviceable!

[BleepingBleepers]

Yeah, I'll need to reorganize my area a bit to give the ants more room. I want to make a decent presentation especially if I'm going to feature it in my journal. I've been clearing out my tarantula collection and now only have my giant centipedes (which I adore even though some of them must think it's amusing to poke holes in me).

 

I chose the Mini Heart XL and at first, I was considering it more for the use of Carpenter ants but then I realized one big CON for me: that it's a rather enclosed area other than the front and therefore, in order to view the ants more, I'd have to consider a front light fixture to shine in (not full, bright light of course, but on a dimmer. You've seen my journal and my clear plastic outworld, so I'm used to gazing down and watching everything happen in the colony, it's something I strive to always have. Somewhat same reason as you mentioned, it calms me down, kinda like a peaceful relaxation / ME-time therapy watching the ants. I didn't realize at first. So after watching enough videos and realizing it, I became a bit unhappy about my choice. However, the idea of some light strips in the front will help that and now I'm using the XLs for the honeypot ants as they'll benefit from being able to hang upside down from the ceiling of the XL. For the carpenters, after watching your top down nest and videos of others, now that's my dream as well, to have a giant top down view so I can observe them to my heart's content. You brought up LED lights and I recall also considering the same but more for a frontal light source. I saw your XXL that you got, that's pretty sweet huh? All that room. I can see he made those dip/grove on the ground so the ants could put their seeds down there (at least that's what I think it's for).

 

And for the DIY, ya I dunno much about the full labor required to make one but I am an artsy, detail driven person so I think the best way to make me happy with the results is if I try to make my own. But of course, as you kind of brought up, it'll be greatly limited by our skill and the access of the tools, equipment and space to make it happen. Guess I shouldn't set the bar up too high, the minimum is just your typical top down view Formiciarum, but I've seen one or two videos that inspired me. And if it all fails, Mack from THA will probably see me groveling at his front doorstep for a custom made one hahaha.

[Ernteameise]

I think I am pretty much close to a population explosion, since the top right chamber is now filled with puppae.

It is great watching this colony grow.

 

[BleepingBleepers]

It almost looks like you're about to serve up a tray of delicious food to an anteater's convention

Ants and snacks on the side.

I wouldn't know how to deal with species that have big population explosions like that. Like going from "eh, there's enough space" to "Oh dang, the heck happened, it's packed now ?!"

[Ernteameise]

It almost looks like you're about to serve up a tray of delicious food to an anteater's convention

Ants and snacks on the side.

I wouldn't know how to deal with species that have big population explosions like that. Like going from "eh, there's enough space" to "Oh dang, the heck happened, it's packed now ?!"

Yeah, it is a bit daunting for a beginner like me, dealing with this growth.

This is exactly why I contacted THA for a bigger nest.

Still no answer to my answer about how to go ahead, but I am very well aware this might be the biggest time in the year for the company.

[BleepingBleepers]

 

It almost looks like you're about to serve up a tray of delicious food to an anteater's convention

Ants and snacks on the side.

I wouldn't know how to deal with species that have big population explosions like that. Like going from "eh, there's enough space" to "Oh dang, the heck happened, it's packed now ?!"

Yeah, it is a bit daunting for a beginner like me, dealing with this growth.

Whelp, if push comes to shove, time to start limiting heat and food or expanding the Outworld.

 

I'm somewhat worried about what I've gotten myself into with my carpenters due to the size of the Majors. Saw some video of the CA02 and I saw one bigger than the freaking Queen and now I'm visualizing multiple Majors quickly filling up the space. They seem to take up like 3x+ the space as the regular workers. I did notice some majors with big o' heads in your colony. I had this amusing thought of them being so big that they clog up the tunnels haha

 

Hope you get a response soon, with how long it takes to customize and shipping, that's like two months out probably.

 

I saw a video of a guy that upgraded his colony to a bigger formicarium and I'm like "dude, the new formicarium is just a bit bigger , you just moved them in there and it's already 60-70% filled" and he's like "yeah, I should've gotten something bigger..." as it took him quite awhile to get his colony to move to the new one. Though I did pitch him the idea of keeping the old one and extending it so he'll be utilizing both.

[ANTdrew]

It almost looks like you're about to serve up a tray of delicious food to an anteater's convention
Ants and snacks on the side.
I wouldn't know how to deal with species that have big population explosions like that. Like going from "eh, there's enough space" to "Oh dang, the heck happened, it's packed now ?!"

Yeah, it is a bit daunting for a beginner like me, dealing with this growth.

Whelp, if push comes to shove, time to start limiting heat and food or expanding the Outworld.

I'm somewhat worried about what I've gotten myself into with my carpenters due to the size of the Majors. Saw some video of the CA02 and I saw one bigger than the freaking Queen and now I'm visualizing multiple Majors quickly filling up the space. They seem to take up like 3x+ the space as the regular workers. I did notice some majors with big o' heads in your colony. I had this amusing thought of them being so big that they clog up the tunnels haha

Hope you get a response soon, with how long it takes to customize and shipping, that's like two months out probably.

I saw a video of a guy that upgraded his colony to a bigger formicarium and I'm like "dude, the new formicarium is just a bit bigger , you just moved them in there and it's already 60-70% filled" and he's like "yeah, I should've gotten something bigger..." as it took him quite awhile to get his colony to move to the new one. Though I did pitch him the idea of keeping the old one and extending it so he'll be utilizing both.

I really don’t recommend limiting heat and food for a young colony. It’s actually very difficult to grow large Camponotus colonies. If you deprive your colony things could backfire.

[Ernteameise]

Well, I hope with getting a THA nest that is for 1000+ workers this should last me a while.

I hope.

 

I had been away for 3 days, so today the girls got some well deserved crickets and so they were pretty busy cutting them to pieces, carrying these pieces into the acrylic nest and there forming groups chewing the bits into even smaller pieces.

They are pretty industrious that way.

 

[Ernteameise]

 

I really don’t recommend limiting heat and food for a young colony. It’s actually very difficult to grow large Camponotus colonies. If you deprive your colony things could backfire.

 

I also do not really want to do that, I felt bad enough I had been away for 3 days, so they had to content with their seed stash.

Messor can actually survive on their seed alone, but feeding extra protein will make them thrive.

And my bigger nest is in the works!

 

Anyways, limiting heat in my top-of-the-house under-the roof flat is not really an option, since I do not have AC (like most Germans).

So the ants will live with their "Spanish" temperatures during the year (they are from near Sevilla in Spain):

25-30 degrees centigrade during the summer, and 15-18 degrees max during the winter (not well insulated old flat and need to conserve energy, so heating only in evenings when I am home).

Right now I actually leave the balcony door open at night so the flat can cool down a bit during the night.

I think the ants won't like being cooked as little as me!
 

[Ernteameise]

A few more pictures of my beautiful majors in the nest

 

 

 

 

And the next generation of majors getting ready