ANTSTORE World of Ants

[adam james]

Hello Niko , i been having some problems with my queen , she hasnt been laying and the larva started to run out , that ment the workers stoped cutting so i tried to seperate the fungus garden into two to see if i can revigorate them. It didnt work and eventually they moved the fungus back . the Queens healthy and the workers seem healthy. well i was advised by the guy i got my colony off to put some damp substrate in . I did this on monday and it seemed to encourage them but this was short lived . They started to seal up the entrences to the boxes and then the the workers started actually removing the sand/dirt substrate. By thurs it had all been removed and they still hadnt cut any leaves. By satarday i was getting really worried so i took out the fungus garden and colony , cleaned there setup out and removed all the substrate and placed the bisque tiles back in . I moisened these and promptley placed the fungus garden back in. Well they were quick to settle in again and by sunday were cutting leaves again , alot of leaves I think i may of spotted the workers carrying a few eggs so hopfully things will be ok .

I just used a spoon and gently seperated the fungus Niko , its not that bad if your gentle and doesent damage the larva or pupae. Also they will start a new ones themselves when the colony is big enougth.


Regards

Adam

[adam james]

Hey guys thort id just give a quick update on my colony . Well after a few scary moments the fungus garden shrinking and the ants not cutting , im glad to say over the weekend cutting resumed and the fungus garen has started grwoing again. Im worried perhaps my queen had stoped laying and the larva had run out , hopfully this new start with cutting signals a stash of larva hiding somwhere.

Anyways heres a few pictures i took a few weeks ago but didnt manage to upload.

Hope everyone is having a nice day

Adam

[adam james]

Hey guys , how is everyone hope all is well with your ant colonys.

Sorry i havent updated for awhile , to be honest i havent wanted to tempt fate untill now lol. My leaf cutters wernt doing so well untill a few weeks ago, the queen seemed to have stop laying and the fungus garden was fading away to nothing, it then grew fast and then again faded away. Now the fungus garden is bigger then it has ever been and im so glad to say piles of newly hatched larva and larva of a variety of sizes are being seen all over the fungus garden. , there are lots of pupae aswell and i am witnessing new workers being born so all is great. The queen is healthy and being active she has positioned herself on the side of the fungus garden and has moved about in the same spot for awhile now, she must like it here because now the workers have built the fungus around her and she is now in a chamber.

Will update with picutres soon .

Regards

Adam

[Andie]

Well done Adam Mine however are failing, they stopped cutting leaves and the fungus is all but gone. Ive tried cutting small pieces of leaves up and placing them on or near the fungus but they are taken away. The queen has moved away now and there is a tiny piece of fungus besides her so perhaps they may start again but i'm not to hopefull

[adam james]

o no that really is not good Andie , they may well pick up , mine did the same and not once a few times lol. I have found mine have sealed every tiny gap and hole they could find with wet sand. Maybe yours have to much air flow ? , im just trying to guess. Since mine have sealed themselves in the fungus has took off and the queen has started laying again. I find it odd that they are not cutting leaves , with all those larva about i was sure they would be stimulated enougth to start cutting. Have you tried them on rose leaves or willow leaves ( the weeping willow kind) these are by far the favourite type of leaves i have found and full of moisture this time of year. Maybe try these. ?

[Andie]

I tried all sorts and willow was one of them. The only leaf that gets attention seems to be lilac and the tiniest ants seem to nibble the underneath surface off but its just not enough. I was wondering if the ceramic tiles could have fungicide in them but if yours are ok then thats not it. Airflow is minimal by the ammount of condensation in the viv and under the bottle top which is now a plasic cup because the bottom is now flush against the tile. I did move the fungus onto a small plastic tray so it wouldnt get wet from condensation running down the sides. Anyway lets see what the next few days bring..

[adam james]

o right , well i hope they pick up Andie , i wouldent of thort there would be fungicide in the tiles and yes mine are doing great on there tile, the only thing i know is maybe humidity is too much , i certainly dont have condensation like you have to be honest i rarly add any water at all i have only added it a few times since keeping them and i tend to let the leaves add the moisture,it seems to be working for me but i dont know how each colony will react i suppose setup is a biggy issue to consider. keep us updated mate.

Regards

Adam

[Anton84]

Any update on the colony?

[adam james]

Hello Anton84

Yes the colony is doing great , many larva and lots of pupae and new ants emerging daily. The fungus garden is growing ever so well and almost completly fills the container its in. I have to get around to getting some pictures lol

Regards

Adam

[Anton84]

Glad to hear its doing great, yeah would love to see some more pictures. I have been searching the forums and the web on leaf-cutter ants. Seems the initial part of getting the environment for the fungus to grow is the very difficult bit. People having all their own ways, some using the clay balls or soil and on some photos nothing on the bottom at all. Antstore send out perlite in their leaf-cutter ant starter kit, all very confusing to me. But looks like your doing something right with your tiles. Id love to keep theses critters in the future , thats why your setups good for me to learn from.

[adam james]

Hey guys , here are a few pictures i took last night , the colony is still doing great and the fungus almost fills the container. I will be trying to take a piece of fungus soon and see if they will start a second garden in anouther container.

Heres the pics

Fungus doing really well

One of many piles of larvae on the fungus garden

Notice the light coloured new workers behind , theres more emerging each day.

Workers still cutting and working hard

Hope you like



Adam

[Anton84]

Looking good the fungus has grown loads . Hows the humidity going you not using any heat mats or lamps?

[adam james]

Hello Antone

I dont use lights or heat matts , only lights i use are the ones to light up the containers for viewing, these are only extremly low watt and too high above to provide heat. Humidity is somthing i dont add to anymore, while the colony was small i use to put a few small drops of water onto the tile untill i would see a little puddle underneith. But now the fungus almost fills the container i just add leaves and let the moisture from the cut leaves add the moisture to the fungus when the ants add it.

Because i didnt heat the setup i always make sure i purchase my ants during summer.So my home stays warm due to warm weather . I find by the time autumn , winter comes like now , the weather outside is getting colder , but my house heating is enought and the fungus large enought to provide warmth to keep the colony active and fungus happy

Regards

Adam

[adam james]

Hey guys well i succesfully got them to establish two fungus gardens. I had to transfer alot more fungus then i wanted too but the ants have now added leaves to both gardens which is great.

I have added a few more pictures , hope you enjoy

More larva and pupae , new workers aswell

Second fungus garden

Queen fungus being rebuilt

Her royal antness

Worker feeding queen a tropic egg

Looks like they are doing great so far

Adam

[jbc]

Nice pics, Adam.

It's great to hear that your colony is doing great.

My Camponotus ligniperdus are doing great too (they are about 60 workers, lots of majors) - 1 dead worker in every 2 weeks, lots of eggs and larvea, dug a nest in humus.

I also caught a Lasius flavus queen who now has eggs.

Good luck with your Atta.