Nearctic Carpenter Ant (Camponotus nearcticus)

Camponotus nearcticus is a beginner-level, mostly black species of carpenter ants. They have both minor workers and major workers!

Diet is fairly generalist for this species. They love sugars, like honeywater or sugarwater. Protein is easy to provide, they’ll eat crickets, fruit flies, mealworms, dubias, etc. Fruit flies are a favorite, as with many other ants. The best growth is usually achieved on a diet of fruit flies and sugarwater.

Colonies benefit from a heat source. Around 80 degrees is ideal for this species, but do provide a heating gradient within the nest to include some cooler areas. Make sure the heat doesn’t ruin the humidity!

This species requires a diapause period, which should last 3-4 months ideally. During this time, the ants need to be cooled down to a low temperature, with around 40 degrees fahrenheit being ideal. You can achieve diapause by placing the ants in a controlled cooling unit, such as a wine cooler, mini fridge, or regular fridge if temperatures are safe. If you cannot use any of these, a non-heated room which stays above freezing could work.

Brood development can take anywhere from 6-9 weeks, usually around 7-8 weeks. Heat and proper feeding can help speed this up. Colonies grow slowly in numbers, rarely reaching above 40 workers in the first year, but possibly hitting 100 or many more workers within the second year. Colonies rarely exceed 2000 workers once mature, making this a decent ‘mid-sized’ colony for a collection!

Queen size: 8-10mm

Major size: 5-7mm

Worker size: 4-6mm

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