ANTSTORE World of Ants

[miszt]

the best way to do it, is to just conect it up, and wait for them to move by themselves, forcing them to move will stress them out allot

let the plaster nest dry out, and keep the gypsum nest warm, dark and moist, and the plaster one dry, cold and fully lit, they will move eventually

[darradar]

@antdude, yeah its the one from antstore
@miszt, hmm i cannot see this way being possible, there is no way i can connect the new to the old, without them all escaping..!

hmm actually now i think, perhaps i could poke the plastic tube down the actual entrance of thier borrow in my tank, this way they would only have access to the tube and into the new nest, and not the foroging area, and like you suggest taking the front cardboard off making it bright, and keeping the the new dark....yes i can see this could work.... thankyou..

[ant dude]

well, my order came today an i ordered this Gypsum nest 6+1 chambers to keep my rubras in temperely until christmas, when i order an nice starter set from them.anyway it is rather small i was very supprised by this. when i saw it not much room in there the tunnels are about 1cm, plus this cant really fit many ants in.

what size are your ants/queen? they may not be able to fit in the gypsum nest :

i hope they can fit though and it all works out and they move to there new nesting site

[darradar]

indeed you might find this too small, however, you will find your ants should love it, this 6+1 gypsum chamber nest is almost the same size as the actual plaster/sand nest i made for mine, and the my tunnels are also about 1cm thick, though i can see that the antsore one is going to be much easier to mientain, and like i said, they can easily be added too as the colony grows.

[darradar]

Hello, wow so my new corner glass formicarium arrived from antstore yesterday, and it is reall fantastic, for me and the ants !!
instead of using the 6+1 chamber gypsum nest i also orderd, i decided i would try and make a new plaster nest, without adding sand, as this is why i think they where able to chew through the other one, any ways, i have completed it, and they moved out swiftly over night.. so i guess they are really impressed, it has a fitted venilated lid, so this time its accessible much easier, and a huge surface area it bieng 40x40 cm with a huge almost 60cm front (its corner shaped so triangular) and 20cm high, so i thought im sure i can make another nest to fit, just using diferent dimensions for the actuall chambers and passages.
This time remebering i only have a 3" hight restriction, but a 17" width area to work with, i decided the chambers needed to be less round when viewd from the front and more deeper. Bearing this in mind, i set about moulding the plastercine until i was happy. As you look at the finished nest, it appears as 2 parallel passeges, with a slight variental chamber size, however, on closer inspection, you notice that the chambers are deeper, which i think makes for a better set up for my colony, it only stands to reason that out in the wild, they would build a nest in a simular way, horizontally, needing deeper rather than high chambers. Its doubled the size of thier foraging area also, allowing me to add more greenry in the form of plastic plants.
My only problem guys is, i cannot find my dam camera.....i have searched the house high and low, and i just cannot find it.... i think its in the car, i will check out later, and get up some pictures, cuz i know yuor gonna ask.!!

[sithmaster676]

sounds great darradar and of course we would all love some pictures
Sithmaster676

[darradar]

Hello guys, yippe found my camera tonight, so here are the pictures of my new formicarium, the corner glass one from antstore....

[ant dude]

great set up, i love it myself 10/10 very nice job i hope your ants are enjoying there new home because if i wer a ant i certanley would be

[sithmaster676]

yes very good setup well done.
Sithmaster676

[darradar]

Hello guys, just a quickie if I may, my ants are in hibernation, but there is still some activity, I have kept an eye on them and added some suger/honey waters now and then..., I can see the egg sack that was there before they hibernated, but I dont think the queen has added to it, im sure she's stopped laying. She also seems active, is this normal?

[JimmyVe]

Yes it is normal for them to move.
Not a bad idea to give them some food, i give my ants that are in hibernation 1 once a week new honey (ore sugar/water) and fresh water, also now and than a small bug. So if they like they could eat.
The queen probably stops laying eggs like you said, that is a good thing, now she can come back full force is they wake up.

[darradar]

cool thanks Jimmy, I do only change the food probably 1 time in 2 weeks, and the water too, and have only offerd a bug 1 time which they left, so i havent botherd with a second try.

[JimmyVe]

Looks nice, a few more weeks and they can wake up again.

[ant dude]

yeah, and when they wake up i'll(we) be looking forward for some pics of these ants aswell darradar...... lol

[SteveUK28]

Just wondering darradar... how do u conrol moisture in the setup??? im guessin that is a ytong block u have there..