von darradar » 12. Jun 2007 23:36
I am glad others here support my comments, Kiam, it is not guaranteed that the ants will dissapear, look back at what I suggested, "putting them in a bucket, and prividing some tunnel entry points with food and water on hand" why they might well not need to leave the area, and set up home within the bucket, who knows what they will do, but what I do know is, and I think so do you deep down, they have the right to choose.
Myself and many others here, who have un-native ants, have a responsibilty to provide housing for the chosen colony we keep, we do not have the luxury of being able to set free our colonies becuase we cannot house them properly, but you are in a different situation, you rescued a colony and luckily with a queen, and a native species to the UK, at the time "YES"! it was a fantastic thing you did, and again I commend you, but now I think you must realise, to care for them and provide for them is beyond your means, and you must set them free.
Please please please think about it, yes it's great yuor feeding them, but imagine, when a single queen is placed in a test tube and she starts a colony within it, she knows no real differnce, the test tube "IS HER" nest, but to take a queen from an established nest that she built up, with 200+ workers and restrict them to a test tube, is not so good, ( placing the siad queen and her army into an artificail environment, where all there needs are provided for, adequate nest space with heat,food and water etc is ok), she and her workers have lost thier home and become secluded. I hope you can apreciate what I am trying to say.
We all support what yuo did to save them, really we do.