Occultus's Myrmecia pavida - Bulldog Ants

[occultus]

Yesterday at 9am I received my colony of Bulldog Ants. They are very active and evidently intelligent.
I've never seen an ant have so much awareness! Every time I enter my room or stand up, the ants turn around and stare at me. Its very cool and also very creepy.

Here they are inside the boiling tube. 8 workers + the Queen. They looked at me as if to let them out 


Made an offering of Cockroaches and sugar water for their release








The big Queen Huntress resting on a tree branch




Checked them this morning and found that they have moved successfully into their new nest


We will be keeping our eyes on you!

[jeoff82]

Very nice, what set up are you using there? Have you any idea how difficult this species is to keep?

[occultus]

I'm housing them inside a custom built nest made predominately from grout. It has built-in heating and hydration system.

Myrmecia pavida are classed as easy to care for. They come from Southern Australia so they can handle a dry nest. They can handle lower temperatures such as 15c but they do develop faster in warmers conditions. I keep their nest between 19-24c and the arena 23-28c

P.S Here is an overview of the nest.

[jeoff82]

Oh yer I seen them nests for sale. Not cheap but they look like the kit for the professional. What is the quality like? Nice looking ants, though they look pretty fearsome. I think they are from western Australia? I went there but didn't see any. The temps out there was between 35-40c everyday during the spring but cold at night. These ants probably like it very hot.

[Wood~Ant]

A really nice species, and as long as you can avoid getting stung they will make a very interesting ant to watch, as they can jump pretty far to catch insect prey. I shall certainly follow this journal and wish you luck keeping them.

[occultus]

The queen has laid a lovely batch of eggs. The Bull sisters are protecting their future. Despite their fearsome appearance, It's amazing to see how gentle and attentive they are whilst caring for the young. Funnily enough, the queen is on the opposite side of the nest as if she wants nothing to do with her eggs...as far as she is concerned, her work is done ha ha!





29.10.16

1 queen
7 workers
10 eggs