If a queen ant on the ground still has her wings, she is likely unfertilized. If a queen has already chewed her wings off, she is likely (but not certainly) fertilized. Nuptial flights often happens after a heavy rain or a drastic seasonal change. After these flights a fertilized queen ant will land and remove her wings before locating a spot to found her new colony. Ants engage in nuptial flights during spring, summer, and some species have also been recorded to have their nuptial flights during winter. The first step involved in ant keeping is capturing a fertilized queen ant. If you are in the UK or in any other European country, most exotic species of ant can be purchased legally through vendors though it depends on local laws.
In the United States queen ants can be bought from vendors provided that the seller meets state and federal requirements, including USDA permits. There are differing methods of starting, caring for, and housing an ant colony. People who keep ants may also keep them for scientific purposes and experiments. Ant keepers may also choose to keep ants as a casual hobby i.e., as pets. This field of study is called myrmecology. Federal law restricts shipping live queen ants of other species (and other “plant pests”) in interstate commerce.Īnt keepers may choose to keep ants in captivity to document ant behavior (in the case of an ant species which is difficult to observe in the wild). With the exception of Pogonomyrmex occidentalis, U.S.
Keeping ants as pets have been a common hobby since the mass-marketed Uncle Milton's Ant Farm achieved commercial success in the late 1950s, though these ant farms did not include a queen ant for legal reasons. Note the talcum powder/rubbing alcohol lubricant mixture applied around the top perimeter of the enclosure, to prevent ants from escaping.Īnt-keeping (or ant keeping) is a hobby involving the capture, care, and observation of ants and ant colonies. ( February 2022)Ī formicarium, which is a housing for an ant colony. Please help improve this article either by rewriting the how-to content or by moving it to Wikiversity, Wikibooks or Wikivoyage. The purpose of Wikipedia is to present facts, not to train. This article contains instructions, advice, or how-to content.
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