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Post by scotty667 on Jun 10, 2013 20:04:16 GMT
Hi my names Scott, New here and currently become fascinated with Ants, but because I've never kept any before I've looked into the Lasius Niger and Lasius Flavus being the easier species to keep (I hope) but would just like a little help with the best way to keep them. I keep many animals myself, Corn snakes being one of them but have kept many others so it's not something I take lightly in considering a new animal to keep. My first thought was making my own nest with Plaster of Paris with tubing leading off into a foraging area this being an plastic tank or fish tank, but have also Seen Ytongs being used. So basically just need a hand with whats best to use or size of nest to make ? Thanks Scott.
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Post by Shawn on Jun 10, 2013 21:30:05 GMT
Hi and welcome to the nest Scott, You will find very helpful members and staff here so don't worry about asking questions L. niger and L. flavus some people do say are good starter ants so give them a try About the nests, plaster can grow mould as the 2 species you mention need moisture so do best in soil nests like a traditional ant farm, Ytong well I am making my own at the moment so can't comment but I have seen people use them successfully but then like most things in life it's personal choice
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antmadmike
Nurse Ant
Posts: 91
Country: Scotland
Pets: Messor barbarus
Favourite Ant: Army ants
Likes: 21
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Post by antmadmike on Jun 10, 2013 21:42:15 GMT
hi scott and welcome to the forum. I am new to keeping ants too, I have my Lasius niger in a (20/20/30cm) fish tank filled 1/3 with sand and loam. which will do till they get bigger in numbers then I can add more tanks. But you can use Celcon Standard Aerated Block from B&Q to fill the same space which will give you foraging area and nesting chambers hope this helps you.
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Post by scotty667 on Jun 10, 2013 21:53:48 GMT
Thanks you both for the replies. My first thought was to get a Mated Queen and let her establish her own colony so then it gives me the experience to watch a colony grow into something amazing. I might have to re-think about plaster then and possible look into the aerated blocks. I thought about going straight into a big set-up but with just a queen it will possibly be too big especially with a few workers once she eventually lays and they develop, but now maybe I should start small or even section parts off until the colony starts to grow a lot.
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Post by scotty667 on Jun 10, 2013 21:54:45 GMT
Also forgot to mention I'd like to be able to see them in their tunnels and possibly the Queen too ?.
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Post by Jenny on Jun 11, 2013 7:22:52 GMT
Hi Scott, welcome to AHW and to the world of ants. You'll find all there is to know about ants here, and questions are not a problem. You need to start off small but also think about extension availability for later, don't think of a big set up initially unless you intend to put a very large colony in it to start with. Small colonies can't cope with too much space, they rush around getting stressed deciding where to settle down. The formicariums board has several members at the present time, developing ytong type nests. L.niger and L.flavus both like to dig, so adaptations for the individual species needs to be thought out for success. Enjoy your visits, as the interest in keeping of ants will develop the longer you research into it
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Post by Wood~Ant on Jun 11, 2013 8:10:08 GMT
Hi Scott and welcome to the Ant Hill. We treat all questions asked with the same respect here, whether posted by a newbie or a more experienced ant keeper, so no worries about asking what you might consider silly questions about ants. I would not recommend Lasius flavus for any beginner, as even more advanced ant lovers have problems with ants that are mainly underground foragers; and having kept ants myself for the past 50 years, I have learned this species is never easy. Lasius niger are fairly easy, but so are many of the Formica and Myrmica genus; and even some more exotic species are not that difficult either. My very first ants were Formica lemani and Myrmica ruginodis, the first is a lively medium sized black ant and the latter is a lovely red ant, but as Myrmica sting when angry and can be a bit more aggressive, avoid allowing little children to handle them. Have a good look at our species profiles and other boards, as they will help you to decide.
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Post by scotty667 on Jun 11, 2013 15:40:34 GMT
Looks like I'll definitely have to re-think then, if the Lasius Niger don't do very well in plaster or Ytong then maybe I'll have to get a tall Formicarium (Spelling ?) for them to dig down into, but I'd like to be able to see their tunnels and possibly the queen, if this is possibly though. I don't really want anything that can hurt when they bite just incase I had an escapee so I'd like to go for something easy and harmless for the first time just to get used to them and watch a colony grow and go from there, but I can definitely say now they're not gonna be my only Ants . What Ant Species do well in plaster then as I like the idea of making my own Nest out of Plaster of Paris. I have gone through the links on here and found a couple youtube channels so have been watching a few different videos .
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Post by Wood~Ant on Jun 11, 2013 15:55:40 GMT
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Post by scotty667 on Jun 11, 2013 16:43:21 GMT
I think I'll go for that Ant world then as it seems the most appropriate for this type of species and especially if I'm just going for either a Mated Queen or a Queen with a few workers. I've got a question about water though how do I go about this I've seen videos of people using test tubes with a cotton bud or something at the end or cotton buds on their own with it soaked in honey water ?. Also whats the best substrate to use for them to dig down into ?.
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antmadmike
Nurse Ant
Posts: 91
Country: Scotland
Pets: Messor barbarus
Favourite Ant: Army ants
Likes: 21
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Post by antmadmike on Jun 11, 2013 16:59:03 GMT
they will get there water from the sand mix, so you will only need to put the honey water on cotton wool in the foraging area with dead insects. ant world has the sand mix with it so you are all good to start.
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Post by Black Ant on Jun 11, 2013 17:09:42 GMT
I know wood ant likes to use a mixture of sand and peat. The sandy stuff that is supplied with the ant world is very fine and does have vermiculite added, which is okay for holding moisture but can make the set up get wet and might cause mould to grow on any food or dead insects. You only need to keep the soil mix slightly damp, and any condensation that forms will act as drinking water, or just give a drop of sugar water.
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Post by scotty667 on Jun 11, 2013 17:17:43 GMT
I've heard of vermiculite growing mould as a lot of people use it for incubating Reptile eggs too so I'm not sure if that'll be a problem in future for the Ants or not. Looks like I'll be getting a Ant World then and once that has come put in a order for a Lasius Niger Queen with possible workers too, then start looking at my next species to keep .
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Post by Wood~Ant on Jun 11, 2013 19:05:24 GMT
I throw away the sand medium that comes with the Ant World and add my own soil or sandy mix. You do get a plastic pipette to add water with, and I place a small plastic bottle cap inside the small foraging box to put a wad of honey water soaked cotton wool in. For the money these are good value set ups, as I currently keep 7 of my smaller ant colonies in them. You can add more set ups together if the colony grows bigger by means of the connecting tubing.
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Post by scotty667 on Jun 11, 2013 19:52:59 GMT
I throw away the sand medium that comes with the Ant World and add my own soil or sandy mix. You do get a plastic pipette to add water with, and I place a small plastic bottle cap inside the small foraging box to put a wad of honey water soaked cotton wool in. For the money these are good value set ups, as I currently keep 7 of my smaller ant colonies in them. You can add more set ups together if the colony grows bigger by means of the connecting tubing. Not sure if I'm allowed to post a link to here but the website that I got to here from sell a Digging mix which is sand and loam, Is this any good for them ?. Also the foraging area seems a bit small but I don't know the dimensions of this, so could I attach the tubing into a different foraging area thats a little bigger ?.
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