Veromessor pergandei
(Black Desert Harvester Ant)
Care Sheet
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I'm the founder of Stateside Ants, Anthony Prothero, and I've kept Veromessor pergandei for many years! In this sheet, I'll be giving as much detail as I can regarding the care and lifestyle of Veromessor pergandei in captivity. This species is a personable beginner ant!
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Veromessor pergandei is present in California, Nevada, and Arizona, mostly occupying open sandy areas.
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This species is mostly solid black. Their workers can vary in size, with some larger workers as the colony grows! Colonies can grow to more than 10,000 workers.
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Short Sheet
Queen size: 9-12mm.
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Worker size: 3-6mm.​
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Founding method: Fully-claustral, but can benefit from a few seeds.
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Egg-worker times: Around 28-35 days.
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Polygynous?: Sometimes, but usually monogyne.
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Ideal temperature: 79-85, with low 80s being most ideal. Good idea to leave a cooler section for the queen and young brood to occupy.
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Humidity: 80-90% in parts of the nest. Drier in others for seed storage.
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Diapause (hibernation)?: No.
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Protein preference: Fruit flies, roaches, crickets, and more.
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Carbohydrate preference: Various types of seeds including (but not limited to) Kentucky Bluegrass, Dandelion, Sand Lovegrass, etc.
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About the Queen
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Veromessor pergandei have stocky queens with a jet black, somewhat shining body. ​
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Most of these queens will begin laying eggs soon after being caught, getting anywhere between just a small handful of nanitics to up to a dozen or so.
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V. pergandei is typically monogynous, but some populations can be polygynous to some extent. In some populations, queens will found in groups but be culled down to one upon worker arrival. It's best to keep the queen around 80 degrees Fahrenheit during founding.
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About Growth
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Veromessor pergandei could be considered steady growers. Provided with a good stockpile of seeds, consistent heat, and of course moisture, the colony could easily reach 500 workers within a year. However, with additional protein feedings, the queen can be encouraged to lay more eggs resulting in quicker colony growth.
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This species has a fairly quick egg-worker time, with callows typically hatching no more than 40 days after the egg is laid.
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Colonies of this species can achieve more than 10,000 workers!
Temperature & Setup
The best temperature to keep this species is the low 80s, usually about 82 Fahrenheit. However, I always prefer to leave part of the nest to be a bit cooler with some moisture. This ensures that the queen and eggs (eggs tend to have a higher mortality in warm, dry areas) have a refuge if need be. If you can, have one side of the nest be warmer and drier, and another be humid and cooler.
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If you have a young colony kept in a test tube, make sure you don't heat near the water reservoir. This can cause a flood. Instead, heat at the front of the test tube, allowing the ants to choose the temperature sweet spot and move their brood accordingly.
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Depending on the nest you move the colony into, it could be a good idea to attach up a water test tube. This ensures that the ants have a refuge in case of their main hydration source drying up (which could lead to disaster). If you see the whole colony piling in the water tube, that means the nest is too dry and needs to be hydrated immediately! This makes it so that the colony is only mildly inconvenienced, instead of completely dead from dehydration (which can happen in just hours).
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Make sure not to move this species into a nest that is too large for them. The workers should be able to fill at least 1/3 or 1/2 of the nest (depending on how much space their seed store would take up).
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​It's probably a good idea to keep these ants in the test tube for as long as you can. However, once you can't feed them in there anymore, or there's lots of seed casings and debris being piled up, upgrade them to an outworld. These ants do enjoy having a place to pile all their trash. ​
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Feeding
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Veromessor pergandei is a seed-harvester species. This means they can live mostly off of seeds throughout their lives (workers, queens, and brood). However, they greatly benefit from having protein offered frequently, as it maintains the health of the queen and helps supercharge colony growth. Below we'll detail which foods are best for them.
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Seeds favored by V. pergandei:
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Kentucky Bluegrass
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Dandelion
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Sand Lovegrass
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Chia
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Poppy
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Many more
Our seed mix typically features 10-20 different types of seeds, and V. pergandei will eat most, if not all, of them.
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As for protein, this species isn't picky.
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Fruit flies
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Roaches
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Crickets
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Mealworms
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Many more
Roaches and fruit flies are favorites. Make sure not to feed them anything toxic or that has pesticides.
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It's a good idea to make sure the colony has a large store of seeds at all times, and that you're offering fresh seeds pretty regularly if you can. Fresh seeds mean the colony is able to grow. Sometimes, the ants want to have a stockpile for hard times, and they won't grow if they aren't getting new seeds as they refuse to deplete the stockpile except in dire conditions.
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Hibernation
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Veromessor pergandei does not need hibernation and is capable of growing year round!
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To summarize: Keep your Veromessor pergandei at around 81-83°F throughout most of the nest with a cooler gradient in some parts. Feed them mostly seeds with some protein every little while, and watch the colony grow!
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If you're interested in getting specific help from antkeepers, see our Stateside Ants Discord server!
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If you want to purchase this species from us, check this page!
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