Anthony HortonLadies, I generally don't mind having a few ants around the house, but I really don't think a shelf in our laundry press is a good place to keep your brood.
I guess it's the ants' house now.
If it were just a few workers foraging around the kitchen I'd be confident about persuading them to go elsewhere just by being scrupulous about preventing them from getting into any of our food. These girls have clearly settled in to our laundry, however. I'm not sure that they'll pack up and leave just because food becomes more scarce in the immediate vicinity.
Anyone want a colony of, I think, Ochetellus glaber? Free to a good home.
A while back the kid was asking for some pet ants. I guess they're in luck...
I don't think tiny black house ants would have been first choice of species though. We'd probably have gone for one of the big Camponotus species, so it would be easier to see what they're doing.
@futurebird Any tips on persuading an ant colony to move out of my cupboard beyond making more effort not to accidentally feed them?
myrmepropagandistProvided they have a way of leaving if you can find a way to stop them from getting water they will leave quickly.
Making ants leave by cutting off food is much more slow as they can last for up to a week without eating.
You could also use heat or cold to your advantage.
@futurebird Thanks. I really can't think where they could be getting water inside the house, but they must be getting it from somewhere so I'll investigate.
JonnyB@spacelizard @futurebird we are under constant attack from ants of all varieties up here in Buderim. There is plenty of water outside so I have no idea how you would persuade them to leave peacefully. I also am continually amazed at the places they find to make a home inside, from cupboard drawer runners, a Raspberry Pi case, and I even had big ants make a home in my Bose TV speaker leaving a hole in one of the speakers. We tend to notice a lot more activity when there is impending wet weather, however that has been happening for weeks, and most forays have been dealt with. The little ants seem to be the hardest to find. Earlier they were all over the dish washing brushes, presumably for food traces left there. And why to ants like caravans so much! At Yeppoon recently they were coming up the stabilisers and the wheels! I like and admire ants, please just stay outside!
The laundry ant colony has at least given me something interesting to point my cheapo USB microscope at.
Lots of workers looking after the larvae, some callows, and a few alates.
The bright light from the USB microscope clearly agitated them, which suggests to me I might be able to persuade them to move the brood out of the linen press by opening the doors, taking out the linen, and thereby denying them the darkness that they need to feel that the brood is safe. I'm sure they'd only move as far as the nearest dark nook or cranny, but that would still be a move in the right direction.
There's never a thorny devil around when you need one.
PhilWill@spacelizard or an echidna!
@PhilWill Well, yes, but I'm That Lizard Guy, so I've got to prefer the reptilian option.
cafuego šš¤¦š¼āāļø@spacelizard @PhilWill With sufficient selective breeding Iām sure you can turn the quills back into scales.
allrite@spacelizard Time for a new pet?
"Sic Em Rex": Antz Pantz Ad 1989
neoluddite@spacelizard the other thing that agitates them is if you breathe/blow on them - they detect the warmth and moisture as a predator, and it might also convince them to move on.