pyroant
Leaf Cutter Ant 
Posts: 76 
Country: Canada
I Like: bugs.
I Hate: Pancakes.
Likes: 9
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Post by pyroant on Mar 30, 2013 16:27:57 GMT
In about 4 days a colony of 5000 workers and 4 queens will be arriving on my door step and I'm worried about them getting out. I've built the largest nest I've ever had from scratch to sit next to my desk on a mount. the dimensions are about 4'X3'X1'. Everything is set up and working fine but I'm not sure what to use to keep them in the tank? I've been playing with the idea of using axle grease but I'm still undecided. I refuse to use talcum powder because its messy and leaves unsightly flakes around the base of the tank when it start to crumble. Any advice on what to use would be greatly appreciated. Especially from people who have experience with this Sp. Thank you P. UPDATE:They arrived and pictures have been posted.  |
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pyroant
Leaf Cutter Ant
Posts: 76
Country: Canada
I Like: bugs.
I Hate: Pancakes.
Likes: 9
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Post by pyroant on Mar 30, 2013 19:15:40 GMT
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Post by TenebrousNova on Mar 30, 2013 19:53:09 GMT
Wow, good luck! That's the very species that I would like to keep once I am at the pinnacle of my ant-keeping. Shane appears to have had good luck with baby oil, which seems to be keeping his Messor barbarus in check so far. Looking forward to photos when the colony arrives. |
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pyroant
Leaf Cutter Ant
Posts: 76
Country: Canada
I Like: bugs.
I Hate: Pancakes.
Likes: 9
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Post by pyroant on Mar 31, 2013 19:22:52 GMT
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pyroant
Leaf Cutter Ant
Posts: 76
Country: Canada
I Like: bugs.
I Hate: Pancakes.
Likes: 9
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Post by pyroant on Apr 3, 2013 14:21:09 GMT
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pyroant
Leaf Cutter Ant
Posts: 76
Country: Canada
I Like: bugs.
I Hate: Pancakes.
Likes: 9
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Post by pyroant on Apr 3, 2013 14:22:19 GMT
Ant grave yard/trash area  |
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Deleted
Hibernating
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2013 17:00:14 GMT
I use Vaseline to keep my ants from escaping. Not too sure if it will work with this species though.
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pyroant
Leaf Cutter Ant
Posts: 76
Country: Canada
I Like: bugs.
I Hate: Pancakes.
Likes: 9
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Post by pyroant on Apr 3, 2013 23:20:54 GMT
thats what I used and I haven't noticed any escapes so far.
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Hibernating
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Apr 6, 2013 11:52:37 GMT
I originally tried using vaseline but found that once the colonies settle down and start exploring more they can build a bridge over it in a single night - a second defensive line would be a good idea. |
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Deleted
Hibernating
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Post by Deleted on Apr 6, 2013 16:31:59 GMT
Yeah I can see that happening, sometimes workers will dump rubbish on the vaseline.
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pyroant
Leaf Cutter Ant
Posts: 76
Country: Canada
I Like: bugs.
I Hate: Pancakes.
Likes: 9
|
Post by pyroant on Apr 7, 2013 15:24:12 GMT
The temperature in my house is kept around 60F during the day and around 49-56F at night. I'm hoping the temperature is enough to drive them back in, should they find a way out.
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Post by Asiletto on Apr 8, 2013 12:19:48 GMT
Nice colony! Can I ask where you buy it? I've seen a shop that sells them, but I'm not sure if they ship from Thailand or from UK.
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Post by Wood~Ant on Apr 8, 2013 12:31:21 GMT
Nice colony! Can I ask where you buy it? I've seen a shop that sells them, but I'm not sure if they ship from Thailand or from UK. If it is My Ant Shop site, they are in the UK and all ants are posted (shipped) from here to any country where it is legal to import ants. Italy shouldn't be a problem as it in the EU. |
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Post by Asiletto on Apr 8, 2013 12:39:19 GMT
Nice colony! Can I ask where you buy it? I've seen a shop that sells them, but I'm not sure if they ship from Thailand or from UK. If it is My Ant Shop site, they are in the UK and all ants are posted (shipped) from here to any country where it is legal to import ants. Italy shouldn't be a problem as it in the EU. Yes it is the site I was referring to and the only one I've seen selling P. diversus with multiple queens. I read on the "Postage" page they also ship from Thailand, and I think the shipping from Thailand don't have D.O.A guarantee. I hope to find a P. diversus queen myself the next holiday I do |
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pyroant
Leaf Cutter Ant
Posts: 76
Country: Canada
I Like: bugs.
I Hate: Pancakes.
Likes: 9
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Post by pyroant on Apr 15, 2013 0:14:24 GMT
I originally thought that I'd have to keep food pinned down because they were not strong enough to catch full sized crickets and meal worms but they do very well on there own.
I even had a crab in the tank to keep large debris cleaned up but they killed him too.
Egg production is back and on the rise and new workers are hatching every day.
I'm thinking about getting a feeder lizard and seeing how they do with that.
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