damondeionno: (28. Jul 2008 16:17)

Andrew, I don't mean to be rude, but mixing species really isn't a great idea in the vast majority of cases. I'd give up on it if I were you.

Andrew: (28. Jul 2008 16:23)

i kinda gave up the idea of mixing the two species. I am asking if i used a different outworld, how large would it have to be?

damondeionno: (28. Jul 2008 16:26)

It would depend on the species, but for species with relatively small territories, 20 m2. Obviously this would increase with faster moving, more aggressive or more adventurous species. Don't forget that most enclosed environments will not allow ants to spread out in all directions and so they will probably travel further from the nest as a result.

mpir: (29. Jul 2008 07:32)

The other day I came accross something very interesting. I was outside and I found some picnic place where there was a circle of stones that people put there and burn fire inside it.

I moved one rock an found some small Temnothorax -like species. I observed them for a while and just out of curiosity I moved the second stone in the ring not expecting to find anything. To my surprise a bigger specie of some Formica ants was living there. I then turned some other stones and to my great surprised I found a colony of C. ligniperda (first time I found them in the wild). What really amazed me was that all this different colonies were living so close together. The ring of stones was smaller then one meter in diameter. Too bad I didn't have my camera with me. :evil:

SteveUK28: (29. Jul 2008 09:47)

you could always go back n get some pics for us :P

tail__: (29. Jul 2008 12:27)

I can see similar neighbourhoods in city - nests of Lasius niger, Formica cinerea and Manica rubida all in 1m^2 of pavement, and all of these species are quite agressive. However, their foraging territories are always divided, and sometimes they are very large, usually including also vertical areas like trees and bushes.

JimmyVe: (30. Jul 2008 00:08)

But in nature there 'out world' is much bigger than the ones we give them, you can not compare this with ants in captivity.

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