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Post by amy on Mar 6, 2013 12:34:14 GMT
Hello! I am currently studying a bachelors in Fine Art and for my final degree show I am hoping to install a multi-tank formicarium. I must make it known that I have absolutely no experience with keeping ants, but have been heavily researching ant behavior, the reproductive cycle, suitable habitats and food requirements and (hopefully) have been collecting suitable resources to accommodate the little lovelies. I'm planning on using Lasius Niger ants, as I have read that these are much more passive than other species of ant and also good for a beginner to work with. I will be measuring the gallery space later on today so I will have a better idea of how much room I have to work with, but my initial plans are to create several slim line, acrylic tanks, to be connected with tubing and placed on shelves filling the entire space. I want to encourage the ants to be as active as possible so am thinking of having a seperate container for the nesting area, serval different areas for foraging (I will use a variety of food - honey/sugar water, protein pellets, etc) and another area with some kind of water reservoir, or drinking area. I realise that I need to keep the entire environment hydrated/moist perhaps through some kind of watering system (I've read that you can use pieces of cotton wool for such necessities, but would really like to keep my influence on the environment to a minimum), any ideas on this will be greatly appreciated. As the space is quite large, I think I may have to use two colonies, obviously not connected by the design will give the illusion of one giant colony. I am wary of the time scale for the work as the exhibition needs to be hung by May, but I am hoping to have each element constructed by mid April so the ants have a chance to get accommodated in their new home. The public viewing of the show is some time in June. Obviously, as the work is to be displayed publicly, I need to ensure that the tanks are well sealed and have purchased some PTFE and foam seal tape - any reviews of these? Effective? I will upload sketches of my plans for the construction layout by Friday this week to give a clearer idea of my intentions for anyone who is interested in discussion. Another very prominent issue is the dismantle of the exhibition and relocating of the formicariun. At current the only idea I have on this concern is to lure the ants into the foraging area and disconnect the tubing so they are transportable in a single container. Then once I have them back at home I can reattach all of the components. I've read that if you cool ants in the fridge that this makes them docile so perhaps this could be an option. Obviously I want to transport them as ethically as possible and will certainly be hearing from press if relevant precautions and plans are not implemented! Sorry for the length of this post. Thank you if you're still reading! Any advice is very much appreciated. Sketches coming soon!! Amy
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Post by Jenny on Mar 6, 2013 13:50:35 GMT
Hi Amy and welcome, I expect you are aware by now that you are expecting a lot out of a few months, what should take years to develop? L.niger are not as passive as you think, as I have found when digging my garden. They do take time to develop tunnels, which at a guess is what you are striving to achieve for a good appearance for your show. I must say, I do have strong reservations as to whether you will achieve this by May!
They also need time to adapt to their new environment and can stress easily, resulting in the queen eating eggs etc . Regarding the "luring into the foraging area" for transportation, the queen will not move out of the nest, and some workers will be loyal to her. A few workers can be coaxed with a drop of honey water, but to move a whole colony even for an experienced ant keeper takes weeks. The best way, is to move the nesting areas as a whole section, having disconnected any outer tubing and seal the holes up. Keep the formicariums in the dark, when transporting to reduce stress levels. Best of Luck 1f272727f769137327ecdc4044e746e2
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Post by crockatt on Mar 6, 2013 18:08:44 GMT
Hi, I began keeping nigers last year and I agree with jen, I do not think you will get the mature set up look, your hoping for, my ants are in a soil set up and after a year have only now began to dig tunnels and it is rare now that I see what is happening in the nest, I think to have any luck you would need to use a plaster nest or similar, and you would have to buy a well established queen with many workers and brood, as you donot have the time required to raise them. I wish you luck with your project and keeps us informed of your progress.
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Post by amy on Mar 6, 2013 19:50:41 GMT
Hello everyone, thanks for your responses! I have the measurements from the gallery now so will be drawing up some sketches regarding the size of the components by Friday so I can communicate farther my plans. How long will it take the ants to begin tunneling and foraging, as I am thinking of having several small colonies that will make up a total image? Obviously these colonies will be kept in seperate environments but the layout will suggest an entire work. Are there any of species of ant which might be a more productive species otherwise? Thanks again! Amy
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Post by Wood~Ant on Mar 6, 2013 19:59:05 GMT
Hello everyone, thanks for your responses! I have the measurements from the gallery now so will be drawing up some sketches regarding the size of the components by Friday so I can communicate farther my plans. How long will it take the ants to begin tunneling and foraging, as I am thinking of having several small colonies that will make up a total image? Obviously these colonies will be kept in seperate environments but the layout will suggest an entire work. Are there any of species of ant which might be a more productive species otherwise? Thanks again! Amy Each colony will require its own separate foraging arena and not be able to integrate with workers from another colony. Ergo 4 colonies would need 4 separated nests and foraging places. It will only take perhaps a week for them to start digging out a nest. Depending upon the size of the overall set up, like I said in my email Amy, will govern whether you have medium or larger ant species.
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Post by amy on Mar 13, 2013 17:33:08 GMT
Hello everybody!
I am aware that the colonies will need to be kept separate from each other; I will be making four separate nests and foraging areas which will be linked together with tubes for the ants to travel along. To encourage the ants to tunnel I might use two foraging areas at either end(s) of the nest(s). These four colonies will have tubes between them, but these will not actually be accessible to the ants; they are to give the illusion of a single colony, as opposed to the actual four. I am choosing to use four colonies in hope that smaller colonies will look more productive than one large colony, in the time allowance.
I have drawn up some extremely rough plans below to illustrate what I mean. I also have measurements of the space now, but this could be subject to change... I should be able to confirm these tomorrow after the curation team meeting (wish me luck!).
So, image 1: This image shows the entire measurements of the gallery space which I have, for now, acquired. The space is 458 cm / 15 Ft long and 247 cm high. I have decided to break the wall space up into quarters, measuring 229 cm across, 138 cm high. As you can see there is a corner on the left hand side of the wall, of which I have not yet specified a use for, but it should be noted that I might be able to use the corner of the wall, should this have any particular usefulness to the project?
In the centre of the wall will be a small flat screen TV and DVD player, playing a film with little to no sound coming from it. The next image shows a breakdown of each one of these quarters, which will hold one colony per area. Image 2: Now, there are several components to this piece, each of which are labelled on the diagram. Now, obviously there are several things, that as a beginner, I do not know, especially in this case the suitable dimensions for living environments of Lasius Niger ants. I am wary of how big the colonies might potentially grow to but have yet to find any answers other than that queens can lay 75-100 eggs a day which sends me into a slight panic that these sizes will not be adequate. Coincidentally, perhaps my research at this time is just inadequate, but that is why I am here! I'll get on with the explanations, reading from right to left:
This drawing is a breakdown of the top left hand quarter of the gallery space (component 1 in image 1) The shaded tubes represent tubes that will not be attached/accessible by the ants; these tubes are for decoration purposes only. Component 1: FORAGING AREA 1: this area will be long and thin, measuring 35 cm wide by 3 cm thickness and 15 cm high, the area will have points for the introduction of food as well as water (cotton balls dropped through the top). The surrounding area will be made from clear acrylic, with PTFE along the top and a fine mesh roof. This area will have a very thin layer of clay granules along the bottom and a very thin sand and loam mixture, perhaps with some small pebbles of seeds for them to jig around. Is this an adequate area for the ants? FORAGING AREA 1 will be connected to the MAIN NEST AREA (Component 2) by a 10 cm piece of tubing. Is this tubing going to be too long for the ants not to bother travelling from the nest to the food area? This tube will connect with the top of the main nest, and I am planning on introducing my ants to their new environment in this tank first. This tank, potentially, will contain the coolest temperature, which is why I will place the main source of food proteins in here.
Component 2: MAIN NEST: this area will be much taller than the first with a rich mixture of sand loam, gravel and clay granules to line the habitat in attempt to prevent mold. I will sieve the sand loam and spray with a mister prior to adding it to the tank. I will also use a pipette to add further moisture if needed gradually. The nest plans to be 15 cm long, 2 cm wide, and 35 cm tall - are these dimensions adequate? I wonder if the design should be longer or taller with a slimline design. The tank itself will be made of red acrylic, as I have red that ants do not recognise red as colour but rather the dark. Hopefully this will encourage the ants to tunnel and replicate their natural habitat?
Component 3: FORAGING AREA 2: I plan to incorporate a 20 cm long piece of tubing, just over halfway down the main nest area to encourage the ants to tunnel farther out into their environment. This piece will be 40 cm wide, 15 cm high and 2 cm wide. I will not place as much of a variety of foods in this area, rather simple sugar and water for energy boosts. This area will be another water source also, using a deeper amount of the sand loam as opposed to FA1, again, to encourage ant tunneling behaviour, however I wonder if they will just use FA1? Perhaps I should rotate the use of each area..? Other thoughts are greatly appreciated!
I will go into the other 3 sections of the diagram in a later post for there is much here to read and to discuss! Thanks a lot
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Post by Valiant on Mar 13, 2013 18:12:13 GMT
If the ants go into the tubes, will they be able to get into another nest or foraging area? If they can do this then ants from one colony will fight with another, so you need to keep each colony sealed off from the other 3 by some method or other.
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Post by amy on Mar 14, 2013 10:44:15 GMT
I don't know how many times I've already explained this, but I will explain again; the tubes are for aesthetic reasons only. I know that you cannot mix the colonies as they will fight. There will be FOUR colonies in total, as shown the wall will be divided into FOUR separate areas (see image one, which is numbered). Each of these separate colonies will be comprised of 5 or 6 components, as illustrated in image 2. SO: in image 2 the tubes will connect, and the ants WILL be able to travel between the tanks, but these tanks will contain, in total only a single colony. This design, image 2, will be repeated over the wall space, as depicted in image 1. SO there will be four separate colonies of the design in image 2; I plan to make 4 x the material depicted in image 2. Once I have 4 x image 2 built, I will hang these on the wall as in image 1 - 4 separate colonies on the wall, each colony allocated INDIVIDUAL tubing which they ONLY will have access to. There will be no cross-contamination, if you will. However, as depicted in image 1, I want to give the illusion of the work using only a single colony - but such a large scale work in the time scale I am working to is not possible. So, I will place tubes to visually link all of the components (each quarter, as in image 1) but these tubes will be closed - the ants cannot travel along them to intersect with the opposing colonies. I really hope I have cleared this up now, any feedback on the size of the components depicted and the layout, etc, would be really really appreciated as I need to finalize my plans and order my acrylic asap. If not, I need to change my idea Thanks guys! Sorry if I haven't been clear also about the tubes. Peace!
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Post by Jenny on Mar 14, 2013 11:44:32 GMT
Hi, initially ants will adapt to what ever size you have for them. It's only when the colonies expand you have to look at add ons, tube extensions or even a bigger formicarium. For a project it won't be a problem, it's after care you have to think about. Do you plan on keeping ants in the future, and how much space do you have in your home invironment? We have had so many students here over the years, that a "Uni Project" about keeping ants has almost become a "fashion", sometimes with poor after management because people don't always really have that interest in keeping them for themselves.
Please don't talk in such a condescending manner to member (Valiant), who was only asking a question trying to get it clear in his head. Members don't always read the start of a thread to get the gist of it. Thank you.
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Post by amy on Mar 15, 2013 20:04:28 GMT
Hi, Apologies if my response seemed condescending, I was merely trying to be as direct and clear with my intentions as possible, so not to have describe the idea a fifth time. I did write at the end of the post 'Sorry if I haven't been clear about the tubes. Peace!' but I am sorry if my tone seemed at all condescending. I really do appreciate everyone's insight. Jenant, you have now addressed my next issue with the project; the dismantle of the design! My intentions at current are to keep one of the colonies and rehouse the other 3. But first I need to think about transportation of the formicarium? Eeek! I'm going to get on to the acrylic company this week and order the components for the first 4 nests and foraging areas, as well as the tubing. Does anyone have any advice regarding the coloured (red) acrylic? and also, on suitable mesh/lids? Thanks.
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Post by amy on Mar 19, 2013 13:35:48 GMT
Hey there! I'm ordering some acrylic today, with a specialist acrylic company and hoping that they will be able to make the entire structure for the tanks. I've purchased some PFTE to coat the top of the acrylic, I'm wondering about what kind of lid to construct for the top? Initially, I'm considering using some kind of slide in lid which will use a very fine mesh so that air can still permeate; does anyone know of any suitable material for this, or have any other ideas about how to make a suitable lid? You're all invited to the private view by the way, if any of you are interested there will be an entire show of work across a variety of mediums, including games art and design, film, photography, paint, print, sculpture, installation, projection, etc. As well as refreshments (booze and food!) all for free - hey, it's a night out! If anyone would like the details of this I'll be happy to send you them. Also, any feedback on the red acrylic would be much appreciated. Thanks again!
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Post by Black Ant on Mar 19, 2013 13:40:31 GMT
Can't offer advice on the acrylic, but Odesssus did sell some very fine metal mesh stuff.
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Post by Jenny on Mar 19, 2013 14:26:55 GMT
Another solution for mesh would be using a double layer of car mesh. One layer is no good they squeeze through it! I don't know of any hard red acrylic, but maybe another idea would be to visit "HobbyCraft" for red film, they have centers everywhere in the South
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Post by crockatt on Mar 19, 2013 14:32:58 GMT
I have red acitate on my farms and the ants are much happier with it on, when I remove it they run about hiding etc, but it does make seeing them a bit tricky, I would imagine red acrylic would be a bit clearer, as in not a sheet stuck onto something, you could always do one side red, and if it's not clear for viewing turn the nest to the clear side, but it again comes down to your own preference.
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Post by amy on Mar 19, 2013 17:56:36 GMT
Can't offer advice on the acrylic, but Odesssus did sell some very fine metal mesh stuff. Is Odesssus a person, distributor, or company, etc?
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