Home > Frequently Asked Questions > Is it safe to feed ants other dead ants?

If it's clear the ants haven't died from disease or parasite, then I can't see any problem with feeding ants from one colony to another. However, in nature, when ants perform raids on colonies of other ants, they seldom kidnap workers as food items, but eggs, larvae and pupae are often consumed. If any of these are surplus then they make much more suitable food items.

Remember, ants have a very high 'shell-to-flesh' ratio. This ratio is often considered by those who keep reptiles and amphibians in selecting a good 'live food' insect. As larvae and pupae have no hardened exoskeleton, they are almost all 'flesh', which is the good stuff!

You may find that workers, even from another species are rejected on this basis.

Tags: Frequently Asked Question | Keeping Ants | Behaviour

About Us

AntBlog is a budding community of ant enthusiasts. We study ants and track ants in the news.... more

Featured

bullet pointEvolution of the ant

bullet pointKeeping & studying ants

bullet pointAnts for kids

bullet pointSpecies index

bullet pointFrequently asked

Latest updates

Do ants bleed? Ant circulatory system
Ant blood is a colourless liquid. It is circulated through the body by the contraction...

Formicarium
A formicarium is a purposefuly designed enclosure used to contain and study ants. The...

Eusociality
The term eusocial was introduced in 1966 by Entomologist Suzanne Batra and subsequentl...

About us
We're a community of ant enthusiasts who've been online since August 2008. Richard is ...

Keeping ants in captivity
Keeping and studying ants can be a rewarding experience. Wether you're interested in b...

latest 50

Web Highlights

bullet pointBiodiversity In Focus

bullet pointMyrmecos.net

bullet pointBug Girl’s Blog

bullet pointAdventures Among Ants

bullet pointmore