How to Start an Ant Farm
Watching an ant colony at work is pretty interesting. You’ll see the tiny critters at work, moving around the anthill as they bump antennas. Such a sight kills stress while you learn a thing or two about the lifestyle of ants. Interested? Start an ant farm and you’ll have as much fun making it, as you would observing it.
An Anthill Upgrade
Building an ant farm is much like creating a diorama. You will recreate an anthill inside an empty aquarium using a combination of similar and makeshift materials. Food must also be provided to ensure the ants’ nourishment, as well as moisture and the proper airflow. Except for the empty aquarium, all the materials are readily available. If you are not willing to purchase an aquarium, you can simply use a sizable clear container.
Materials Used:
small rectangular aquarium
anthill
worker ants
queen ants
cloth with small air holes
bread crumbs
fruit bits
sugar
leaves
water
dropper
trowel
Procedure:
Find an anthill. Scrape it with a trowel and transfer the dirt and soil inside the aquarium. Make sure that they fill at least two thirds of the container.
ant farm
Get a multitude of worker ants and add them to the aquarium.
Look for the queen, which is a bit larger than all the other ants, then place it in the aquarium. It will mate with the male workers to ensure that the ant population of your farm won’t go down.
When the ants are in place, cover the aquarium with a cloth riddled with small air holes. It will simulate the airflow in an actual anthill.
From time to time, feed the ants with bread crumbs, fruit bits and sugar.
Scatter a few leaves inside the aquarium then drop water on each of them. When they dry up, replace them with a new set of fresh leaves. The moist leaves will act as the water source for the entire ant colony.
Store the ant farm in an area where it can’t be moved or jostled around.
With much attention to the farm’s condition, the colony will surely survive for a long time. Think of yourself as the governor of the encased piece of land. Good service is all that’s needed for a thriving economy - of ants. Enjoy your ant farm!