1 reply to this topic

[FanaticAnt]

Hey guys, was hoping to get some advice from the veterans on here and see what species they have found to be resilient and relatively easy to keep. I'm not looking for anything that needs to be hibernated or takes years to grow like some camponotus sp., this being said the larger the ant the better for observational purposes. I think its also worth noting that I am looking for a species that can be keep in a non-natural plastic nest. Any info helps

[YsTheAnt]

Formica fits all your needs, exept they will need substrate in the nest to absorb formic acid. This can be a thin layer on the nest floor though. They do have a diapause period in most reigons.

There are some faster growing Camponotus (like C. modoc), that can get to 40+ workers in the first year if given a heat gradient from the time the queen is caught onward. Camponotus fragilis also grow quite fast, are quite large (not compared to some other Camponotus, but they are definitely large enough for naked eye viewing), and don't require hibernation (unlike C. modoc).

Veromessor pergandei might be the best for this set of requirements though. They are medium sized, fast growing, and easy to care for. They also have majors that can get quite large. They also do not require hibernation. The only difficult part of keeping these is that they can grow very fast and can get quite destructive, and possibly difficult to contain.

Edited by YsTheAnt, July 1 2018 - 7:51 PM.