Click the screen to move to the next entry. Expect entries to come weekly unless I'm on vacation. As of late August the queen fell sick with an infection I assume to be fungal. She died 3 days alter. I tried to help by cleaning up their environment and offering fresh food but it didn't do much. In early June, A died from an unclean living enviroment (unfit queeens usually don't clean up after themselves, and cleaning a test tube with a founding queen can go badly.) B died a week later from Ophiocordyceps (zombie ant fungus- no clue how she got that.)
The ants I am keeping are called Red Imported Fire Ants. These ants originate from the Amazon rainforest, and have a venomous sting which can cause paralysis in large amounts, this is used to kill their prey which is usually large insects. DO NOT KEEP THESE ANTS IF YOU ARE NOT EXPIRIENCED IN ANT KEEPING! They are invasive and destructive and will destroy native plant and insect species if they escape your care! They ruin agriculture, costing the US billions of dollars every year. Do NOT handle these ants if you are not capeable of caring for them long term. The queen will live up to 10 years, and the colony population can reach the millions within a year. These ants are not for the faint of heart. [DISCLAIMER:] It is illegal to import ants without a permit in the US, where I live. I caught these from an invasive population in my area, and they were not smuggled from South America.
