Dorymyrmex elegans Species Introduction
Fully claustral. A single newly-mated queen founds the colony alone. Their nuptial flights happen on hot Florida afternoons in the scrub.
Endemic to the Florida's very open, sandy, rosemary balds. In the wild they nest in open, white sand that is quite wet beneath their surface; their iconic 'volcano' sand-mound entrances mark colony locations. Dorymyrmex elegans are believed to be mostly crepuscular, as apposed to most Dorymyrmex which lean diurnal. Dorymyrmex elegans have the longest workers of any Dorymyrmex in the US, whilst also being quite leggy. This allows them to more efficiently navigate the loose sand which is abundant in their preferred habitat. Dorymyrmex elegans is known from 3 distinct locales. The Lake Wales Ridge elegans are believed to be the "true" elegans, whilst the Brooksville Ride and Atlantic Coastal Ridge elegans seem more closer related to D. bureni. Colonies are believed to be similar in size to most Dorymyrmex, typically ranging in the low thousands of individuals.
Expect lots of foraging, especially with a heated outworld. Colonies are active, and vigorous. Dorymyrmex elegans burn through energy fast, making them hungry for both protein and sugar. These ants are a bit more sensitive than their relative, D. bureni. Keep the nest very humid, the food stocked, and they will entertain you constantly.
Formicarium
We highly recommend the Substratum Ant Nest for Dorymyrmex elegans due to their humidity requirements.
Water & Humidity
Very humid. Nests in moist, sandy soils in the wild. They can handle low humidity in the foraging area but the nest environment must be humid at all times for the health of the brood and colony.
Recommended to use TrapJaw Labs PVA sponges for founding due to improved humidity.
Keep a liquid feeder with water (distilled, purified, or spring) in the foraging area at all times.
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrate-loving. In the wild the workers spend their days zooming around on the hot sand of the Sand Ridges and burn through a lot of energy. These ants will perish without constant access to carbohydrates.
Honeydew Honey or basic sugar water both work; honeydew honey better matches their wild micronutrient profile.
We recommend providing sugar-water (we use our Ant Nectar Mix) and fresh-water liquid feeders in the outworld at all times.
Protein
We suggest feeding D. elegans colonies fruit flies 2–3 times a week. The more frequent, the better.
TrapJaw Labs feeds our D. elegans colonies with pre-killed D. melanogaster and D. hydei fruit flies. These ants will take most prey items.
Twice per week. Increase amounts to scale with brood development.
Maintenance
Week 1: Settle the founding queen somewhere dark and undisturbed. Stress from disturbance can cause her to consume her own brood, so avoid checking on her during this process. If founding in a test tube with a TJL sponge, humidity and water will be maintained throughout this process.
Weeks 2–4: First workers appear. Start feeding protein (2–3×/week) and put out a 24/7 sugar feeder. You'll quickly see them take advantage of the food they're given and the colony will increase in size.
Months 2+: Maintain humidity and liquid feeders 24/7. Consider a larger humid nest upgrade and more outworld space; optional supplemental heating speeds growth (but don't overdo it).
Diapause is not required for this species.
Care Summary
- Very humid nest environment
- Liquid feeder kept full
- High protein requirements
- High temp requirements; a gradient of 75-90°F significantly accelerates growth