Everyone is familiar with ants. You can find these insects all over the world. How fun would it be if you could keep these critters as pets? It is possible, with an ant farm from:
Esthetic Ants! This way, you can see how an ant colony is created and get the chance to perform this natural process yourself. You can also see how they communicate with each other, take care of their queen, gather food and keep the nest clean. Even the process from egg to ant.
We are happy to explain to you how to prepare and maintain an ant farm.
Selecting an ant farm
So selecting an ant farm allows you to get a clear understanding of the life of ants. There are several ways to prepare them:
Suitable accommodation
The ants, of course, need somewhere to live. You can make your own enclosure or buy one. The ants need an outside world to gather food and a nest where the queen can lay her eggs. The easiest and best option is to buy a ready-made ant farm. Ants can dig their own burrows in a terrarium. But even nicer are nests with pre-made tunnels so you can observe the behavior of the colony closely.
Nutrition
Ants need a varied diet. You can feed your ants sugars, fruits and small insects, such as fruit flies. Just make sure you change the food regularly, otherwise mold growth can occur and we don't want that. If you buy a nest, always make sure the ants have an external drinking source. This way you can provide them with drinking water. The water tank in an ant nest (if present) is not intended for drinking water. It only provides humidity in the nest.
Water
Ants, like humans and other animals, need a constant source of water. You do this in two ways. You make sure there is good humidity in the nest so the ants' eggs don't dry out. In addition, the ants need a drinking water spot outside the nest. This can be in the form of a drinking fountain or droplets of water in the outside world. In a naturally humidified terrarium, you do not need to provide the ants with drinking water. They can drink this from the ground and plants.
Buy types of ants for the ant farm
You can choose different ants for the ant farm. Make sure you never place two of the same colonies together. This is because most ant species are hostile to each other and will fight until one colony prevails. It is also important to consider the different needs of different ants. Furthermore, you need to take into account the size of your ant species, as this also varies by species. At Esthetic Ants, we have an extensive collection of ants. We have European, Asian, African, South American, American and Australian ants, among others. In addition, we have divided the ants into categories of beginner, intermediate and expert. This way you can always choose the type of ant that appeals to you and suits how (un)experienced you are with keeping ants.
Ants farm maintenance
Maintaining and caring for your ant farm is important to keep the ants healthy. Make sure food is replaced on time and that there is always enough water. Remove debris in a timely manner to prevent mites. Mites are small insects that can affect your ant colony in a negative way, so you'd rather avoid them! You can't clean the nest itself once the ants are in it, but if all goes well, the ants will do this all by themselves. Always make sure the outside world is clean. There the ants will make a special corner to dump their waste, as far away from the nest as possible. Also keep a close eye on your ants' environment.
Temperature in the ant farm
The temperature of the nest varies from colony to colony. For most ant species, you can maintain a temperature in the nest of 20-25 degrees. Species found in Europe can simply be kept at room temperature. Remember that most species go into hibernation (diapause) between November and March. During this period, it is recommended to keep the ants slightly cooler in a refrigerator or in the basement. This encourages the queen to lay more eggs after hibernation. Make sure your ants are not in the sun. Hot temperatures may cause them to burn, or if heated for a long time, the queen may lose her fertility.
In addition, touch the ants as little as possible. This actually causes the ants to experience less stress. As a result, the queen will live longer. Every time the ants feel vibrations they think a tunnel is collapsing. Not pleasant. If your colony is growing rapidly, make sure you give the colony more space when the nest is full of workers. This can be done by connecting the same size nest to your ant farm, or moving the ants to a larger nest. You can see how this is done in this video.
Buy ant farm from Esthetic Ants
Ants are just like other pets, so they also need attention and love. Therefore, give them a nice home. At Esthetic Ants, we understand ants. Therefore, we have all the products, accessories and ants to make your ant farm just the way you want it. And do you have any questions? Then you can always contact us. We are happy to help you. Good luck with your ant farm!
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