How to Grow Your Ant Colony (Superfeeding)

One of the most common mistakes beginners make when growing colonies is underfeeding. In this post, we'll introduce superfeeding, the exact opposite of underfeeding. Throughout the antkeeping hobby, antkeepers all over the world might have malnourished colonies that aren't being pushed to their full potential. While some keepers don't quite need to grow their colonies quickly, others want to make sure their colony is growing as fast as physically possible! If you're someone who wants to grow your ants faster, read below to unlock the secrets! We don't use 'cheating' methods such as brood boosting in this article.

Pheidole rhea workers collect food

Think of protein as the water that fuels a plant. Protein is essential for growth. Insect protein is the key driver behind colony expansion, and it’s almost always better to offer too much than too little. When the queen receives an abundance of food, she responds by laying more eggs, leading to bigger worker generations and faster overall growth. Without an abundance of food, the queen's egg-laying power is limited, as eggs require stores of fats and energy to produce and lay.

Once your colony is large enough to have an outworld and foraging workers, feed them as much protein as they’ll take! When they start ignoring or rejecting food, that’s your cue they’re full. However, as soon as it's been 24 hours (or, if you're a real tryhard, even just a few hours) offer more food and see if they take it. Colonies fed to max capacity will grow exponentially faster than those on strict, limited feeding schedules.

The goal of this article is to change your mindset so that you understand your colony can almost ALWAYS be growing faster! Sure, your ants will survive and even grow a little bit with regular feedings every few days. But if you really want to grow them quickly, you should be feeding sustained, large amounts of protein (and carbs, of course) every day consistently for long periods.

However, make sure to remove old food promptly. Leftover protein can attract grain mites or grow mold. Both can be deadly. Clean up any uneaten food after about 24 hours to keep the setup safe and hygienic!

Protein Sources

Fruit flies are one of the best protein sources for ants, especially smaller species. Most ants prefer food they can easily carry from the outworld to the brood. Some species feed their larvae mouth-to-mouth (trophallaxis), while others place solid pieces directly on the brood pile. Genera like Lasius, Myrmecocystus, and Novomessor have larvae that need solid chunks of protein rather than liquids. Fruit flies are ideal because they’re small, soft-bodied, and packed with nutrients—essentially an ant superfood.

Roaches are a unique source of protein as well, as there are many nutrients from them that are not found in many other insects. That, combined with their ease of breeding, makes them the perfect feeder for many ants.

A combination of fruit flies and roaches is a superfood for ants. While it's tough to mimic the natural food variety of a wild colony, we can try our best!

Carbohydrates: The Ants’ Fuel

While protein drives growth, carbohydrates keep the colony alive. Harvester ants typically meet this need by storing seeds in their nests—just ensure they always have a supply of uncracked seeds available.

Most other species rely on liquid sugars such as sugar-water or honey-water and cannot eat seeds. Always provide as much as they’ll take, just as you do with protein. Ants can’t survive on sugars alone (nor on protein alone); they need both to thrive. If you have a species that doesn't feed their larvae by putting food on them but instead via trophallaxis (mouth-to-mouth feeding), it may be a good idea not to feed them as MUCH sugars as they'll take. Some Camponotus are this way. If you feed Camponotus too much sugars, they have a tough time accepting protein to feed to the larvae.

For convenience, Sunburst Ant Nectar is a great shelf-stable alternative to homemade mixtures. It’s perfect for use with liquid feeders, which function much like a hamster water bottle—allowing ants to drink sugar solution anytime, day or night. These are easy to refill and ensure a steady carbohydrate supply.

Heat

In addition to superfeeding, you need to make sure your ants are warm. Your colony's temperature preference will depend on what species they are, so do your research! However, it's important to highlight that keeping ants warmer speeds up growth, metabolism, and overall colony development. There's a sweet spot for every species! Find it! Just make sure not to dry them out when you heat them, and that you heat them very carefully (always offer a gradient, so there's an escape from the warmer areas if necessary).

Recognizing and Maintaining Proper Feeding

A good sign your colony is underfed is when the brood pile doesn’t grow between generations. To prevent this, feed as often as possible (daily, or at LEAST every 2–3 days) and maintain warm conditions suitable for your species. With the right heat and a steady flow of protein and carbohydrates, your colony’s growth will take off!