5 replies to this topic

[antsriondel]

Hey! I have seen more and more new ant keepers asking for specific species care. I have thought for a long time and I decided that there should be a thread were you can ask any questions about ant species i.e feeding, temperature, do they hibernate etc. I know there is a subform for this but I felt it would be easier just to do this as then people can learn about a lot of species in one thread instead of in a Buch of smaller threads that do not have as many species. So I decided to make a thread dedicated to this. I believe it will be helpful to all beginners in the hobby. Please feel free to post about any species you want. My hope is that this will help many new people to hobby. 

Edited by antsriondel, September 28 2023 - 7:31 AM.

[antsriondel]

Here I go wish me luck. 

 

Liometopum luctuosum: An incredible ant species as they grow faster than most species on the planet. They are polymorphic and can sometimes be polygynous depending on wether they except each other. Their workers are around 2.5 mm and their majors are more around 4.5 mm

whereas their Queens are a nice 12 mm. 

 

Nuptial flight time: Usually at the end of May to early June. You will find queens around any area where there is a lot of light which is why I recommend backlighting for them.

Diet: They love to eat any large insects but it is required for them to have a constant access to sugars. 

Care: I recommend a natural tubs and tubes setup as this is a lot easier than just a normal test tube setup and prevents a massive escape as these colonies love to do.

Hibernation: This is up to you they will keep growing throughout the winter but will also hibernate if you decide you need a break from the colony  ( they grow really fast).

Sting: No, but the do spray formic acid so don't make them angry.

I hope that helps any new beginners to this species and if anyone has any more to add to that please do.

[AntPerson76]

(Just a heads up, I'm not and won't be as active as I was when I first joined this forum, but I am still antkeeping and will try to post once every few days. I got an update on my ants coming up soon actually.)

I'm sure tons of people will post about pheidole, so I'll post about a more recent and exotic colony of mine. My Ponera pennsylvanica. 

Overall, I love keeping them and have wanted a colony of them for a while before I got them. I have two thriving springtail colonies that I feed my Ponera with every day (or sometimes I skip one). They are small but cool looking ants, and I love watching them hunt. It's frusterating when they walk right past a springtail, but when they find one, they grab on to it with their mandiables and sting it. My colony has 4 queens and since I got them, has grown in numbers a bit. I can tell by the amount of ants hat emerge when I open the lid. 

Also, they do have some alates, which might be the cause of one of the queens not being fertile. 

They are currently situated in a small plastic container with dirt and a few other rocks and such. They have to be my third favorite colony, besides my pheidole tysoni and dentata. 

[ANTdrew]

The problem with threads like this is that they get quickly buried and forgotten about.

[antsriondel]

The problem with threads like this is that they get quickly buried and forgotten about.

Too true. Could this be pinned? It is okay if not. I just think it would be really helpful for everyone.

[Leo]

I believe you can submit a caresheet draft to drew and he'll put it under caresheets for you