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Post by Deleted on Nov 17, 2015 6:22:00 GMT
17th November 2015 @ 6:20AM
Current temperature in the nest area above ground is 22.1C Still digging and still no action in the foraging area. Condensation in the nest area above ground has virtually gone now and visible condensation on the acrylic below ground level is greatly reduced. I can partly see some tunnel sections at the very bottom of the nest. One ant visible on the excavated soil pile.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 19, 2015 9:32:50 GMT
Thursday 19th November 2015 @ 9:29AM
Current temperature in the nest area above ground is 22.9C Not much visible going on. I can see an ant moving in a chamber at the bottom of the nest and have just watched one bringing a seed up from the foraging box into the nest area. Seeds in the foraging box need replacing once a week or so as they are developing mould growth. I've been putting them in a small tube on its side to make them easier to drag out and keep them from touching the substrate. I need to think about access for when the colony grows as it'll be harder to remove the lid on the foraging area.
11:00AM | 22.7C 2 ants now in the seed tube taking seeds out.
This is the most action I've seen in the foraging box since they moved to the soil nest. I assume the digging has stopped or slowed and they're now stocking.
1:09PM | 22.7C Can't tell if it's the same 2 but they're taking a lot of seeds into the nest.
3:40PM | 22.5C Very busy the past few hours, approx 10 ants collecting seeds and water. They've cleaned the connecting tube between nest and foraging box of seeds and deposited soil.
I have to wonder if the increased activity is just a coincidence or not but I finally got around to adding a light to the terrarium. It's now lit with a 9w Arcadia Jungle Dawn LED bulb.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 20, 2015 8:27:10 GMT
Friday 20th November @ 8:25AM
Current temperature in the nest area above ground is 22.0C Put a small live wax moth in the foraging area. 3 ants moving seeds.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 21, 2015 15:22:50 GMT
Saturday 21st November @ 3:22PM Temperature: 21.4C
Moth is still alive and no sign of any ants today. The excavated dirt pile seems to have gotten larger.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 22, 2015 17:48:14 GMT
Sunday 22nd November @ 5:46PM Temperature 21.2C
No activity at all today. I can see a single seed in the only partially visible chamber in the nest which is at the very bottom.The moth is still alive.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 25, 2015 6:57:53 GMT
Wednesday 25th November @ 6:56AM Temperature 22.4C Ants are out and gathering seeds. They've decided to discard their waste in the nest area and now some discarded remains of seeds have started sprouting in there. They've not yet taken the moth.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 29, 2015 12:39:32 GMT
Sunday 29th November @ 12:32PM Temperature: 21.9 For some reason the ants have been struggling to carry the seeds up the tube out of the foraging area back to the nest the past day or so. There was a pile of abandoned seeds at the mouth of the tube and I sat watching one earlier trying to drag one up backwards but its legs were just slipping. I've removed the soil and cut 2 sheets of coconut fibre and placed them on the bottom of the foraging area and then put the dry soil covering on top. The tube is no longer required as the tank connector is now at ground level.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 7, 2015 8:22:44 GMT
Monday 7th December @ 8:20AM Temp: 23.7C
Very little to no activity lately. I'm just watching a lone ant taking a seed back to the nest. I'm seeing the same leg slipping in the tube between the nest and foraging area that I rectified in the foraging area previously and wondering if I should do something about it. Only thing I can think of is to try and add a thin layer of soil in the tube itself.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 10, 2015 6:24:50 GMT
Thursday 10th December @ 6:20AM Temp: 21.6C
Saw a couple of ants out last night gathering seeds and some movement in the bottom most chamber of the nest. Added the smallest live wax worm I could find but really I probably need to get some lesser wax moth larvae due to the smaller size. It's still moving around the foraging box this morning. Removed a couple of seeds that they'd brought up from the nest that had started to germinate. Otherwise it's pretty quiet. Looking forward to the colony expanding so that there's more going on.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 21, 2015 7:26:02 GMT
Monday 21st December @ 7:21AM Temp: 22.3C
Nothing much happening lately. Going by the recent addition to the excavated soil pile, they are still digging. I see the odd bit of movement at the bottom of the nest but otherwise it's quiet.
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Post by samstew on Dec 21, 2015 16:30:27 GMT
Nest is really cool can you tell me how you made it?
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2015 6:41:53 GMT
By nest I assume you're asking about this? If so then it's an Interplay Worm World. www.interplayuk.com/my-living-world/worm-worldWoodant and a few others use them for some ant colonies. They just require a little modification. Mesh needs adding to the top to prevent the ants escaping out of the large air holes and you need to be able to connect the nest to a foraging area so holes have to be drilled or melted into the plastic.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2015 8:07:07 GMT
Does anyone know why this is happening?
One ant out this morning has blocked up the end of the access tube between nest and foraging area with lumps of dried soil. I unblocked it yesterday and thought the wax worm had accidentally done it whilst moving around.
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Post by Wood~Ant on Dec 22, 2015 8:33:33 GMT
Does anyone know why this is happening? One ant out this morning has blocked up the end of the access tube between nest and foraging area with lumps of dried soil. I unblocked it yesterday and thought the wax worm had accidentally done it whilst moving around. This does happen with my own ants when kept in soil, as in nature it is done as a way of defending the nest from predators and to stop other ants from finding the nest entrance. While a colony in captivity use the blocking method is a nuisance to the keeper, it is instinct that makes the ants do this and all you can do is to keep unblocking the hole.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2015 8:41:37 GMT
Cheers Wood. Will they unblock it themselves when they want to forage or should I keep doing it?
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