Leaf Cutting Ant Forum

Deansie26 wrote:My wife like that so I'll be trying it today! Will let you know if they take it Vendayn! Interesting

Yeah, it be awesome if other species take to it like my colony did. A good food source for the fungus if other Leafcutters go for it, and can get it pretty much any time of the year. Plus stores for a long time without going bad, if kept dry. Could help a lot for those who live in cold areas in the Winter, and can't access plants as easily.

Thanks, will try the colony on Quinoa seeds and see how they go. We can get it here in the UK, but it's quite expensive.

Just ordered some too

Mine have arrived and i will try tomorrow after they have finished their roast potatoe sure thats not good for them but they love it.

Tried the Quinoa seeds and they will take them but not with much conviction. But its something to consider for the winter.

Andy, sorry for my absence, been away. Roast potato, thats a new one!

This is probably more for Acromyrmex versicolor, since they seem heavy on seed gathering. They are a desert species, so makes sense I suppose. But, besides quinoa, might give you guys another alternative for Winter.

But, I've been giving my colony mustard seed. And wow! I put a giant pile of mustard seeds and in less than a week every single one is all on the fungus. I never even seen them do that for quinoa (which they loved for a while, but got bored of). Never seen them take a giant pile of food of any kind, and completely consume it in less than a week however.

I tried other kinds of seed, like poppy seed. They didn't go for that one. Tried walnuts (which I know isn't a seed), sunflower seeds and crushed peanut. They didn't go for those either. Mustard seed though, they sure love that. Each of the fungus gardens (they've made multiple now) have tons of mustard seeds all over them.

So, for seeds. Quinoa is their 2nd favorite (for my own colony anyway), but mustard seed is by far their #1 favorite. As far as seeds go anyway. They still love rose petals and other plant material, the typical stuff.

versicolor are a species I have not kept before. Hoping to remedy that in 2017.
Makes sense that A versicolor would take seeds better that other non desert species. However in the desert you would suppose that they would favour high moisture content forage, given the choice. It is true that the humidity in the nest chamber needs to be as high for versicolor than that of rainforest ants so they generally get around this by digging their burrows very deep. I think the fungus is the same species as all the rest so its requirements are as demanding regarding humidity. I suspect that, because there are no high moisture leaves available in the desert, that the ants have abandoned this means of gathering moisture in favour of relying on moisture from the substrate they are living in and as a result they will take material that is possibly quite low in moisture content. Just a thought.

Acromyrmexbob wrote:versicolor are a species I have not kept before. Hoping to remedy that in 2017.
Makes sense that A versicolor would take seeds better that other non desert species. However in the desert you would suppose that they would favour high moisture content forage, given the choice. It is true that the humidity in the nest chamber needs to be as high for versicolor than that of rainforest ants so they generally get around this by digging their burrows very deep. I think the fungus is the same species as all the rest so its requirements are as demanding regarding humidity. I suspect that, because there are no high moisture leaves available in the desert, that the ants have abandoned this means of gathering moisture in favour of relying on moisture from the substrate they are living in and as a result they will take material that is possibly quite low in moisture content. Just a thought.

That is a good point. They probably dig down to the water level, and that is where they mainly nest.

I did also notice my Acromyrmex versicolor don't really take foods that are fresh/moist as much as dry food. Like, I tried a fresh rose petal and they ignored it (mostly, they did chop it up after a while). But, if I put a bunch of dried rose petals in and crush them up, they seem a lot more interested in it. Guess it makes sense, because out in the desert, there wouldn't be much fresh food available. So, they, as you said, must rely on ground moisture.

Or could be every colony is different, not sure. Over on formiculture forums, Drew (who also keeps Acromyrmex, though he lost all his colonies this year) gave his colony fresh food and they took it a lot more than mine do. Not sure why that would be.