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Post by silkydog on Apr 2, 2012 13:29:31 GMT
I wonder if you can help us. My nine year old has the fascination with ants. We purchased a queen and few workers last year, but the workers have died and we are only left with the queen. Can you tell me if she can survive, or whether she will lay anymore eggs? My son seems to think she can't survive without the workers. We don't know what to do now.
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Post by Wood~Ant on Apr 2, 2012 13:45:32 GMT
Hi Silkydog and welcome to the Ant Hill Your best chance is to find a wild nest of L. niger and see if you can take some brood (larvae or cocooned pupae) from it. You cannot introduce adult worker ants as these will kill her, so she really needs to raise more workers who will adopt her colony smell, as even if she manages to lay eggs it is doubtful she will have the resources to raise them into adults. Hope this helps?
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Post by silkydog on Apr 2, 2012 14:01:36 GMT
Hi Thanks for the information. We live in Scotland and it's a bit cold at the moment. My sons says we have a colony in the front garden. we will have a dig about and see what we can find. Do you think she will last long?
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Post by Wood~Ant on Apr 2, 2012 15:02:00 GMT
Hi Thanks for the information. We live in Scotland and it's a bit cold at the moment. My sons says we have a colony in the front garden. we will have a dig about and see what we can find. Do you think she will last long? It depends on how healthy and well fed she is, as she will probably need some bits of food to keep her strength up; and if you look under paving slabs you might find some ant larvae under the stones which will make it easier to collect. We have several members up in Scotland who may be able to help with this topic.
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