Keeping an ant farm

[AlexC1981]

Hi All,

I've always wanted to set up an ant farm since I was a child, but never got around to it. Following the recent death of my dwarf puffer fish (tank heater thermostat failed after 13 months of use and overheated the water) there is a large empty looking space on my table.

I am going to order a small starter colony of yellow meadow ants (queen + 20 workers) since it is a UK species and I can release them into the wild if I decide this is a bad idea.

I have ordered an Ant World formicarium https://www.interplayuk.com/my-living-world/ant-wo...

It has not arrived yet, but for a cheap kids starter set it appears to be quite decent. I can expand it by creating my own modules joined on with plastic tubing. I like this traditional vertical layout because the you can see the tunnels the ants dig and there are no pre-built tunnels for them. Yellow meadow ants are apparently great tunnellers too.

I can't see this being a popular topic as the last time it was mentioned on PH was 2011 and the thread received no replies.

Anyone else got ants in their home? (intentionally)!

[stuartmmcfc]

My daughters got 2 ant farms.
Tbh, I think they're as boring as fk!
Sorry

[stuartmmcfc]

On second thoughts I remember when she knocked one over and there were ants everywhere in her bedroom

[Wallace12R]

I've always wanted an Ant farm since I was very young, and my 6 yr old son now wants one so this is something that I'll likely be looking at more seriously.

[Gnits]

I always quite fancied leaf cutter ants. Much more interesting than herps, at least they are doing things.
Did read about people with colonies where they had a tube to the outside world so the ants could forage if they fancied.

Post pics once you get it set up.

[TwigtheWonderkid]

I fancy one of those acrylic beehives that are mounted inside your house on an outside wall, and vented out, a bit like a boiler or tumble dryer!. They've got one at London zoo. The bees come and go thru a hole in the outside wall.

[55palfers]

Farm you say.

Get in quick before the EU CAP subsidy payments cease.

[AlexC1981]

stuartmmcfc said:

On second thoughts I remember when she knocked one over and there were ants everywhere in her bedroom

Well that certainly wouldn't be boring

Yes, I'll get some pics up when it's set up.

I've done a bit of reading on them over the last week and I'm going for yellow meadow ants (Lasius Flavus) for a few reasons:

1) They are smaller and slower moving compared to our normal black ants (Lasius Niger), so should be easier for a total noob to deal with in a small set up.
2) They are good tunnellers which should work well in the traditional vertical style formicarium I'm getting.
3) I think the colour makes them more interesting.
4) They don't bite or sting.

The outworld (foraging and rubbish disposal area) that comes with the set is tiny, but I can make or buy a better one. I have bought a box of Ferrero Rocher (the oblong shaped box that comes with 16 chocs), which seems a good size for a starter outworld. I plan to cut a square out of the lid and glue over it with some very very fine stainless steel mesh so I get good air circulation. I have read that a hot glue gun is the best and safest glue for this purpose.

Also ordered some red cellophane since ants can't see red light. I will use this to cover the sides of the burrowing area to encourage them to dig. I read that Lasius Flavus, don't really forage much on the surface, so I might cover the tube to the outworld with red cellophane too, otherwise they might not go down it?

Instead of using the yellow sand that comes with the Ant World farm I am going to fill it with a mix of dark potting compost and black aquarium sand. Hopefully this will give a good contrast against the yellow colour of the ants. I have checked the soil I have and there is no mention of pesticides or additives on the bag. I was going to bake it in the oven first to kill off any nasties that could be lurking in it.

Edited by AlexC1981 on Wednesday 12th July 22:32

Edited by AlexC1981 on Wednesday 12th July 22:33

[Snubs]

AlexC1981 said:

4) They don't bite or sting.

Coward! Get some bullet ants in there (Paraponera clavata) and prepare for sleepless nights wondering what that tiny sound might be...

You can buy them here for the the bargain price of of £190 per ant:

https://antkit.uk/products/paraponera-clavata?vari...

Personally I think ants are fascinating little beasties and wouldn't mind an ant farm myself, but as someone said above it would be leafcutter ants that i would really want. I remember watching them at London Zoo where they put leaves on one side, the nest on the other and a rope connecting the two. I could have watched them marching over that rope for hours. Quite hypnotic.

[AlexC1981]

My formicarium has arrived and this is what you get for you get for your £17.94 delivered. I forgot to include the lid and the stickers this photo. The book is pretty decent. Covers the basics of feeding, catching, different ant types, substrate etc. and is written so it is accessible for children.

I decided to wash the components first in case there was any machine oil or something left inside.

DSC01575 by 1891CxelA, on Flickr

This is the inside panel the stickers go on. I decided not to use this bit as I thought it looked a bit rubbish. It helps with the rigidity and spacing between the panels, but I decided it probably wasn't necessary. I used a small amount of superglue (applied where the ants wouldn't come into contact with it) as reassurance that it wouldn't come apart. It probably was not needed, but I did not want to risk an escape. I only used a few tiny dabs so I would be able to pull it apart without damaging it one day.

DSC01576 by 1891CxelA, on Flickr

Since yellow meadow ants are subterranean ants and forage underground I decided to overfill it so the ants could access the foraging area without going above ground.

Instead of using the yellow sand that came in the kit, I mixed 2 parts sieved potting soil to 1 part black aquarium sand. This should hold moisture better and show up the yellow/orange ants clearer. The soil/sand was washed and baked in the oven for an hour to kill off any nasties or stuff that could go mouldy. I shook and tapped the tank on the floor with each spoonful of substrate I added add to ensure it was well packed in.

DSC01582 by 1891CxelA, on Flickr

I added in about 5ml of water across the top. I think I'll add a bit more later when it has had a chance to travel down. If I make it too wet the ants will not enter it, but if it is too dry the tunnels could collapse.

I plan to introduce them by putting them in the outworld first which will be joined to the main tank with a plastic tube. To encourage them into the main tank I will keep the outworld and tube in the light until they have moved in. I have made a starter tunnel for them with a BBQ skewer.

DSC01587 by 1891CxelA, on Flickr

I have stuck red cellophane onto one side of the tank. The plan is the ants will tunnel against the dark side (ants can't see red light) so I will get a good view of the tunnels. Once they have built some tunnels and settled into their nest I will probably remove the cellophane as it does spoil the look of it a bit. Maybe I could get some acrylic instead.

If I had gone for normal black ants I would not have needed to faff with cellophane because they are not as light adverse at yellow meadow ants.

DSC01590 by 1891CxelA, on Flickr

It comes with two of these covers that I can use to make it darker. To the right is the outworld that comes with the Ant World formicarium and to the left it a Ferrero Rocher box which I will use to make a larger outworld if the colony grows successfully.

DSC01592 by 1891CxelA, on Flickr

Edited by AlexC1981 on Saturday 15th July 14:06

[AlexC1981]

This is what they look like by the way. I won't take delivery of them until the middle of next week.

Queen with workers pictured. The workers are kind of cute...

[stuartmmcfc]

AlexC1981 said:

This is what they look like by the way. I won't take delivery of them until the middle of next week.

Queen with workers pictured. The workers are kind of cute...

No, they're to small to see on here.

[Mr GrimNasty]

They're going to need a very small tractor.

[Nightmare]

Be very interested to hear if your new arrivals settle in - wasn't sure about the concept of ants by post!

I captured a mated queen black ant on Sunday and stuck it in my ant farm (which I bought last year and then failed to do anything with)

She has tunnelled into the main bit and hopefully is now thinking about laying some eggs for first teeny workers......fingers crossed

[AlexC1981]

Nightmare, glad to hear someone else is doing this! It would be good to see photos of the set up you have. Are you new to this too?

I received my ants from AntsMynala today. I have counted 15 workers + queen and 7 (I think) little things that I am not sure if they are eggs, larva or pupa.

Continuing with the photos:

Thought I better join the starter tunnel I made with one to the surface since there are no air holes in my outworld and I didn't want them to suffocate.

DSC01594 by 1891CxelA, on Flickr

Inside my parcel!

DSC01595 by 1891CxelA, on Flickr

The downside of my outworld is I can't fit the test tube in it. Ants not budging and obviously I cant leave them like this. I had wiped some watered down honey along the plastic tube and the opening to the formicarium to coerce them into it.

DSC01597 by 1891CxelA, on Flickr

Got them out by flicking the test tube and gently swooping them with a small paint brush. I hope I didn't cause any harm. Smallest ants I've ever seen. The first generation from a new queen are smaller than normal.

DSC01599 by 1891CxelA, on Flickr

I encouraged the queen into the tube where you can see her above. I would have left her in the outworld, but she was trying to escape while I was getting the rest out. I thought she would probably sit tight once in there and I was right about that.

Since the above photo the queen has been joined by two workers. The other ants don't seem to know she is up there. They have gathered the larva into two piles and a there is a group of ants motionless by each pile.

Not sure what to do now. I think I will leave them alone for a while as they have had a stressful time. If they haven't found the queen by tomorrow, perhaps I should nudge her back into the outworld.

[AlexC1981]

Still there in the morning. No ants appear to have absconded! When I got home this evening the queen had moved to the edge of the tube overlooking the outworld. 10 minutes later and I am relieved to say she has rejoined her progeny in the outworld.

This isn't ideal because I will be disturbing her when I feed them each time. I suppose they will move into the formicarium when their numbers are greater. I am not sure if I should leave a bright light pointed at the outworld to make them move into the formicarium. I might do that on Saturday if there have been no changes.

Also considering naming the queen Rachel.

These ants are incredibly docile. They just sit around all day. I was looking at some quite large (probably 3 times the size of mine) black ants today that were crawling over my car and they were so much more lively in comparison. I get quite a number of ants on my car when it is at work because sap drips on it from the tree above. As Lasius flavus are so small and docile I am wondering if the Ant World is too big for them at the moment. Perhaps some sort of mini set up would have been better until the colony grows.

[Mr GrimNasty]

If you put your ear very close, can you hear the Pink Panther theme tune?

[AlexC1981]

Mr GrimNasty said:

If you put your ear very close, can you hear the Pink Panther theme tune?

Alas I do! I placed a small cotton wool ball that had been dipped in some raw whisked egg in the outworld last night. I think a worker got stuck in it where it had pooled a little and seems to be dead. It's hard to tell if it is an ant and not just detritus because it is tiny and looks squashed up. Perhaps it has been nibbled by the other workers.

Lesson learnt. Make the cotton wool balls much smaller and less wet. I think I will make them more disc shaped so there is no chance for an ant to get underneath any part of it.

My L. flavus don't seem to want to travel far from their queen at all. They are mainly huddling at the moment with only a couple foraging close by. I think it will be a long time before they are numerous enough and comfortable enough to dig some nest tunnels in the formicarium and use the outworld for foraging and dumping as intended.

I did some research into the big speedy ants that were on my car the other day. I think they are Formica fusca. They would make for a lively colony I think.

[beerexpressman]

I had an ant farm once. Them little guys are so lazy, they didn't grow no carrots or nothing.

(Paraphrasing) Mitch Hedberg RIP.

[AlexC1981]

Since my small L. flavus are nesting in the bare plastic outworld rather than the sand/soil vertical formicarium they have access to, I thought I should devise a better solution for humidity and water supply rather than just popping in moist cotton wool balls and risk them drying out, or drowning if I make them too wet.

I made this little thing this morning. Plastic tube filled with water and bunged with cotton wool, which will stay nice and moist, but will not drip. Glued to some plastic to stop it rolling.

Pictured with a handled food tray I made from a suntan lotion cap. The edges of the tray were roughened with sandpaper to ensure it would be easy to climb on.

Instead of using the little base I considered gluing two tubes together to make it roll resistant and get twice the capacity, however my dopey ants would probably get stuck between the tubes!

DSC01614 by 1891CxelA, on Flickr