Ant keepers enjoy a fun and educational hobby, and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) also has an interest in it. You might wonder what ant keeping has to do with American agriculture and natural resources. Some invertebrates that people—including ant keepers—import into the U.S. or move between states could threaten our crops, forests, and community landscapes if they escape. USDA can help you import and move them safely.
Artisan Ant Nests,
Inspired By Nature
Here at Buckeye Myrmecology, we strive to provide you with affordable, high quality nests that your ants will love.
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Lasius americanus is a small, fast-growing ant species found across the entire US. Workers range in size from 2.5 to 4mm, and queens are 7-8 millimeters long. Colonies grow large, reaching into the thousands. Lasius americanus is also a common host species, used by hobbyists to raise a variety of parasitic Lasius species. Overall, they’re easy to care for, fun to watch, and useful to have around — great for any antkeeper, both beginners and experts.
To keep ants, you usually need equipment that most people don’t have laying around the house. The Beginner Antkeeping Kit contains all the equipment and tools you need to raise your very own ant colony, all in one product! Test tubes, cotton, forceps, feeders, and fluon, this kit has everything a new antkeeper needs — except ants.
$26-$49
Formica subsericea is an active, fast-growing species found in the midwestern and eastern US. Workers are a silver-grey, and range from 4-6mm in size. In the wild, this species is known for making mound nests larger than a foot in diameter. They are also commonly used as a host species by Polyergus and many parasitic Formica species. Due to their quick growth rate, F. subsericea can be a good beginner species.
A longtime staple in the antkeeping hobby, the Petri Dish Formicarium is an excellent option for any price-concious antkeeper, with the added benefit of being able to house a very wide range of ant species. This nest is capable of housing anything from large active species to small cryptics, and everything in between. The rough surface and embedded substrate allows many species that cannot walk on plastic or glass to utilize the nest, and provides a medium to aid larvae in spinning cocoons.
Camponotus castaneus is a rare species found throughout the eastern US. Known by antkeepers for its striking orange coloration and large worker size, Camponotus castaneus is a fun, fast growing species ideal for both beginners and experts alike!
The Stick Nest Small is a versatile nest intended for species that naturally nest in small, thin spaces. It can be used as a founding nest for medium sized species such as Camponotus species in the Myrmentoma subgenus, or even as a mature nest for Temnothorax species. Some other genera that the nest will accommodate at various sizes are Colobopsis, Crematogaster, Pseudomyrmex, and Tapinoma. The nest’s 7 millimeter inside width and 6mm inside height is thin enough to mimic their natural nesting habitat, yet still provide comfortable space for the queens.
The small Rock Nest is a founding nest cut from acrylic. The formicarium’s small size (2″ by 2″) makes it ideal for founding queens and small colonies. It is large enough to fit founding colonies of Camponotus, and yet still small enough to fit founding colonies of smaller genera, such as Tetramorium, Lasius, and Pheidole. With 15 millimeters of inside depth at its lowest point, and 9 millimeters of inside depth at its highest, the Rock Nest – Small provides ample choices for the ideal nesting area for any founding colony.
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A Step Above The Rest
What makes Buckeye Myrmecology the place to go for ant colonies, ant nests, and antkeeping supplies?
Healthy Ants
We attentively observe and care for all of our colonies as they grow from just a single queen, so that we always send you the healthiest colonies available.
Quality Products
All of our products have undergone rigorous testing to ensure safety, consisency, and optimal colony growth speeds.
By Antkeepers, For Antkeepers.
We've been keeping ants for over 5 years, and during that time we've learned a lot about them. We've put all of this knowledge directly into our nests, so they can meet the needs of ant colonies around the world.
Fair Prices
A lot of factors go into the way we price our products, all to make sure you can get the best nests for the best prices.