Tar Heel Ants Highlights The Usefulness Of Fruit Flies In Ant Desk 3 Video
Tar Heel ants have always been known for reliable and well designed formicariums. What you might not know is that they also runs an informative YouTube channel that shows off a wide array of ant species, numerous Tar Heel products and also provides their experiences and knowledge from years of ant keeping
In their latest video above they show us how useful fruit flies can be as a primary source of protein for your ants. The fruit flies used to feed ants are somewhat different from the fruit flies that might surround your compost bins or on rotting fruit. The species used are either wingless or have a genetic trait that makes their wing muscles so weak that they cannot use them for flight.
What makes them a good option of protein for your ants?
- Since these fruit flies are unable to fly they are quite easy to manage and you won't have the issue of them flying around
- They are also quite easy to breed and establish a small stable colony that can feed multiple ant colonies.
- Fruit flies are soft bodied so it is much easier for your ants to extract the valuable nutrients out of the fly compared to other feeder insects like roaches and crickets. For small species it would be advisable to crush the insects first
- It's always a good idea to give your ants a variety of food sources to ensure you meet their nutritional requirements. Some ants will start rejecting a food source that they receive constantly
- Fruit flies are usually small enough that larger or aggressive species can actually hunt these alive. The flies will have a hard time getting away without the ability to fly.
- Typically they won't cost you a lot to purchase a starter colony. These flies are commonly used for biological research and can usually be easily purchased online. We at Gamergate have in the past purchased them from Southern Biological however there are lots of stores online that you can purchase them in different regions.
