American Yellow Meadow Ants (L. brevicornis)

General: Lasius brevicornis is a small orange species from the prairies and fields of parts of the US. In the wild, they farm root aphids underground for the honeydew they excrete.

 

Diet: This love of sweet liquids also carries over into captivity, as these ants absolutely LOVE sugars (honey, sugarwater). Although they love sugars, they do need protein (fruit flies, crickets, mealworms) in their diet too.  Feed SMALL drops of sugars as these ants are prone to drowning in liquid. As these ants are used to having sugars constantly in the wild, it is important you offer sugars multiple times a week.

 

Polygny: Lasius brevicornis is polygynous, which means multiple queens can cooperate in a single colony. Colonies with multiple queens tend to grow faster since there's more eggs being laid. 

 

Temperature: This species may heat their brood, (79-82) but heating isn't required and if given, a heating gradient would be ideal.

 

Diapause: Lasius brevicornis must diapause for at least 3 months each year. Place the colony in a mini fridge, wine cooler, or fridge with safe temperatures. If you cannot use any of these, use a non-heated room which stays above freezing. Ideal diapause temperature is ~40 degrees fahrenheit. 

 

Growth: Brood development can take anywhere from 5-8 weeks, usually around 6-7 weeks. Depending on the number of queens in a colony, worker numbers could hit 100+ in the first or second year, and more than 500 by the 2nd or 3rd year. 

 

Queen size: 6-7mm

Worker size: 2-3.5mm

If ants arrive in bad condition, contact us for help. Live arrival is guaranteed.

Shipping happens from Monday-Wednesday. During the winter, shipping may cost more due to the need of a heat pack.