When you ๐ข๐ค๐ค๐ช๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต๐ข๐ญ๐ญ๐บ expand your collection ๐คทโโ๏ธ๐
๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ฎ๐ญ๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐๐ง๐ญโฃ
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๐๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ข๐ง: ๐โฃ
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๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ข๐๐ฌ: ๐๐ค๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐บ๐ณ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐น ๐ฐ๐ค๐ต๐ฐ๐ด๐ฑ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ด๐ถ๐ดโฃ
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These South American leafcutter ants get their common name due to their tough exoskeleton and not to mention, the sharp, 8 spines ๐ช on their thorax.โฃ
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Mature colonies are often found deep in the rainforest jungle where workers will form uniform trails carrying leaves back to the nest underground where they cultivate their fungus ๐โ๐ซโฃ
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When threatened, workers will not hesitate to use their zinc laden ๐ฟ mandibles to bite predators or enemies!
๐๐ฌ๐ข๐๐ง ๐๐ฉ๐ข๐๐๐ซ ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ฌ ๐ธ๏ธ๐โฃโฃ
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๐๐๐ข๐๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐๐ข๐ ๐ง๐๐ฆ๐: ๐๐ด๐ฆ๐ถ๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ข ๐ณ๐ถ๐ง๐ช๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ดโฃโฃ
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๐๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ข๐ง: ๐ฎ๐ณโฃโฃ
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Whilst their web is not techincally the same as a spider ๐ท๏ธ, when disturbed, these ants can release these sticky foam threads more than 10cms in length!โฃโฃ
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These create piles of sticky foam which ultimately stop any enemies in their tracks.โฃโฃ
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Ant Keepers also refer to them as โfoam antsโ ๐ญโฃ
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๐๐ฉ๐ช๐ค๐ฉ ๐ด๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ด๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ญ๐ฅ ๐ธ๐ฆ ๐ง๐ช๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐น๐ต? ๐ฆธโโ๏ธ
One of the best feelings in the world, right? ๐ฅน๐คฃโฃ
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๐๐บ๐ฌ๐บ๐ฌ
๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ซ ๐๐ง๐ญโฃ
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๐๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ข๐ง: ๐โฃ
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๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ข๐๐ฌ: ๐๐ข๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐ด ๐ค๐ช๐ฏ๐ค๐ต๐ฆ๐ญ๐ญ๐ถ๐ดโฃ
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These East African sugar ants get their common name due to their shimmering bodies and fondness of sweet substances ๐ฏโฃ
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Mature colonies are often found deep underground where they grow and nurture their growing empire ๐ก within intricate chambers and tunnels.โฃ
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When threatened, workers will bite and spray formic acid to ward off predators or enemies ๐ฅทโฃ
POSTAL DELAYS : Mini heatwave ๐ฅตโ๏ธโฃ
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We hate to be the bearer of bad news but unfortunately we have decided to postpone deliveries containing live ants and insects for 24/48 hrs as temperatures exceed 30C in London. Unfortunately in this bright weather, vans can get hot very quickly and exceed 40-50C ๐ค which would be detrimental to the antsโ welfare and health. โฃ
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Orders will resume shipping when cooler weather arrives which should be towards the end of this week โ๏ธโฃ
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In the meantime, if we can help with anything, please let us know! ๐คฒโฃ
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Thank you for your understanding and continued support. โฃ
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Your Ants HQ team
Will you join us on our quest to feed all the ants of London with our new nectar solution ๐๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ด๐ธ๐ข๐ณ๐ฎ (๐
๐ฅ๐๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ฌ)? ๐โฃ
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I think the ๐๐ข๐ด๐ช๐ถ๐ด ๐ฏ๐ช๐จ๐ฆ๐ณ (Common Black Garden Ants) approved โ๏ธ where should we head next?
๐๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ข๐ค๐ฉ๐ถ๐ด ๐ณ๐ช๐น๐ฐ๐ด๐ถ๐ด (๐๐๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐ฉ ๐๐๐ฐ ๐๐ง๐ญ)โฃ
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A visually striking species of tropical ant due to its large size and peculiar set of wide opening mandibles ๐คฒโฃ
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Their slender body & ability to jump ๐โโ๏ธ๐จwhen threatened or hunting for prey, make it obvious as to why this is a hugely popular species of Ponerine ant kept in the hobby ๐คโฃ
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This species is known to exhibit one of the fastest animal movements as scientists have observed jaws clamping down at a whopping 60 m/s โก๏ธTo put things into perspective, this is x2300 faster than one can blink! ๐
๐๐๐๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฒ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ช๐ฎ๐๐๐ง ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐ ๐ฌ๐๐๐จ๐ง๐๐ฌโฃโฃ
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With ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ต๐ช๐ข๐ญ ๐ง๐ญ๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ต๐ด ๐ซถ soon starting across the UK and the world, itโs a great time to get involved in the Ant Keeping hobby by collecting your very own queen ant who will raise a formidable colony with the right care.โฃ
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Nuptial flights are a pheromone fueled, orgy of sexual ant alates. Talk about kinky ๐ซข.โฃ
This is a phenomena by which different species of ants are able to reproduce & expand territory ๐บ๏ธโฃ
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๐ช๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐ก๐๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ซ ๐ค๐๐ฒ๐ฌ ๐๐จ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ช๐ฎ๐๐๐ง๐ฌ? ๐โฃโฃ
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Which species are on your list this year? โฃ
Let us know! ๐โฃ
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โ ๏ธAl๐ธ๐ข๐บ๐ด ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฌ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ถ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ญ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ค๐ต ๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ด ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ด๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ด๐ช๐ฃ๐ญ๐บ ๐ง๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฎ ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ด๐ต๐ณ๐ช๐ค๐ต๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ข๐ณ๐ฆ๐ข๐ด
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐งโโ๏ธโฃ
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๐๐ต๐ช๐จ๐ฎ๐ข๐ต๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ข ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ค๐ญ๐ช๐ฏ๐ข๐ต๐ถ๐ฎ is typically found in warm and humid habitats within South East Asia. Think forest floors, leaf litter, and underneath decaying logs ๐ชต๐ณโฃ
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One of the most fascinating aspects of this ant species is their specialised ๐ predatory behaviour. ๐๐ต๐ช๐จ๐ฎ๐ข๐ต๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ข ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ค๐ญ๐ช๐ฏ๐ข๐ต๐ถ๐ฎ use their elongated, razor sharp and perfectly shaped mandibles to ambush unsuspecting prey ๐โฃ
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These ๐๐๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ข๐ซ๐ ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ฌ get their common name as worker ants will typically rely on their own youngโs haemolymph (insect blood ๐ฉธ)by piercing through their larvaeโs skin ๐ฅดโฆ without actually hurting them! ๐จโฃ
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Colonies currently in quarantine and being health checked โ
๐๐ข๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฃ๐ข๐ณ๐ข ๐ค๐ข๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ข (๐๐ฎ๐๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐๐ง ๐๐ง๐ญ)โฃโฃ
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Originating from South East Asia, ๐๐ข๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฃ๐ข๐ณ๐ข ๐ค๐ข๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ข is an enchanting species of ants that are sure to captivate both seasoned ant enthusiasts and curious beginners alike. However, due to their high demands ๐ฐ as a subterranean species of ant, one should have previous experience with other tropical ants ๐ซกโฃโฃ
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The founding stage is known to be challenging and slow, requiring patience and careful observation. However, with the right parameters, one can expect their first 50-100 workers in 4-7 weeks ๐โฃโฃ
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Did you know these are also used in some cuisines as a source of food? ๐ฅน๐ฅโฃ
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๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ ๐ช๐ฎ๐๐๐ง๐ฌ ๐๐ฏ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐๐๐ฅ๐ ๐ฌ๐จ๐จ๐ง ๐ซถ
Say ๐ก๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ to some of our queens ๐๐
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Should we make more content like this again? Let us know ๐
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐โฃ
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An aggressive ๐ก primitive species of ant, characteristically known for its raiding behaviour and aggressive stinging nature. It is often compared to the true Dorylinae subfamily of ants which are commonly known as Army Ants ๐โฃ
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These slender, shiny black ants are often found amongst low lying shrubs of dipterocarp rainforests that span South East Asia, mainly territories within Thailand. Subsequently, a temperature range of 25-27C is recommended with a relatively high humidity of 50-80% ๐ค
What do you think about keeping ants as pets? ๐คโฃ๐
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Letโs find out what the public at Carfest thought ๐กโฃ
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๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ง๐ค๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ @bugfestuk @bugfestnick.wadham
Feeding red runner roaches to one of our display colonies ๐ft. Cerapachys sulcinodis
Fresh Fruit fly cultures back in stock ๐ชฐ
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ซ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฐ๐จ๐ซ๐ฅ๐ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ฌ at Ants HQ at Bugfest, Carfest South @bugfestuk @carfestevent ๐๏ธโฃ
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No better feeling than talking about ants to the general public and providing an insight to the Ant Keeping hobby ๐
Holdtight Ants HQ colony, โฃโฃ๐ช๐โ๐ซ๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ ๐จ! ๐Not just that but we have been working incredibly hard over the past six months developing the ๐ง๐๐ฐ ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ to ensure that you have an even better experience browsing and shopping at Ants HQ. โฃโฃThis year has been our busiest so far and it would not have been possible without each and everyone of you ๐จโ๐ฉโ๐งโ๐ฆ. You might think โoh yeah every business says thisโ but I truly do mean it from the ๐๐จ๐ญ๐ญ๐จ๐ฆ ๐จ๐ ๐ฆ๐ฒ ๐ก๐๐๐ซ๐ญ.โฃโฃWeโre only ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐๐๐ ๐ข๐ง๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ and cannot wait to start releasing more features on the site, more species of ants and more formicarium designs! ๐จ Not only that but some pretty fascinating collaborations with research and film institutions ๐คโฃโฃFor those who have been with us from the start - ๐ฐ๐ ๐ก๐จ๐ฉ๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ค๐๐๐ฉ ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฏ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฅ๐๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฃ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ง๐๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ. For those of you just joining us, a ๐ฐ๐๐ซ๐ฆ ๐ฐ๐๐ฅ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ - we hope to fulfil your every need surrounding ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐๐๐๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ฌ.โฃโฃLastly, please bear with us if any teething issues as we will be checking and monitoring closely should any bugs arise ๐ค๐ซถโฃโฃCesar and the Ants HQ team ๐๐โฃ
Whatโs your ๐๐ข๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐ด ๐ฏ๐ช๐ค๐ฐ๐ฃ๐ข๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ด๐ช๐ดโ favourite food? ๐ชณ๐ฆ๐ชฐโฃโฃHow strong is that worker? ๐
๐๐๐๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฒ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ช๐ฎ๐๐๐ง ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐ ๐ฌ๐๐๐จ๐ง๐๐ฌโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ ๐
