Bundle Offer – Manica rubida

Bundle offer including a Manica rubida ant colony (queen with 1-4 workers + brood)

Only while stocks last.

Everything you need for a Manica rubida ant colony:
This bundle contains everything you need to successfully get a Manica rubida colony through its first few months. It is flexibly expandable and has been tested over several years with this ant species.

Ant species Manica rubida:
Manica rubida lives in central and southern Europe. It is usually found at altitudes of 500-2000 m, i.e. in low and high mountains. It prefers somewhat cooler and more humid climates. In Germany, the species has been considered endangered for some time. This is probably mainly due to the loss of suitable habitats and the warmer and drier climate.

Manica rubida has a sting. This helps them to prey on small insects and defend the colony.

Manica rubida queens found semi-claustral nests, i.e. they leave the nest during the founding phase in search of food. Larger colonies often become polygynous over time, i.e. have several queens. This is known as secondary polygyny, i.e. they adopt their own or other young queens and incorporate them into their own colony.

Manica rubida hibernates in the wild between the end of October and the end of March.

Nest for Manica rubida:
Manica rubida nests in rather sandy soils. They can be found in gravel pits, open-cast mining areas or floodplains.

Food for Manica rubida:
Manica rubida feeds on insects and nectar in the wild. Like Lasius niger, for example, Manica rubida also keeps aphid colonies and defends them. However, this is observed somewhat less frequently in this species.

We have included all our blanched crickets and honeydew as food in this set. Both are very well accepted by Manica rubida and support a natural and positive development of the colony due to the nutrients they contain.

The optimum climatic conditions for Manica rubida are as follows:
Humidity:
Arena: 30 – 50% Nest area: 50 – 70%
Temperature:
Arena: 18 – 28°C Nest area: 21 – 24°C

Contents:
1x Manica rubida (queen + 1-4 workers + brood)
1x Whole blanched cricket
1x Honeydew mix (HT) – refill pack 10ml
1x Formicarium base – 20x20cm
1x formicarium base – 20x6cm

1x ANTCUBE – arena 20x20x10 – flat
1x ant arena frame 20×20
1x ant arena cover 20×20
4x fixing point for arena cover
1x ANTCUBE – ant farm – M – 20×20 – upright

1x 0,5m tube transparent 14/10 mm
1x ANTCUBE – Red foil 20×20 – filter
1x substrate – meadow – 1kg
1x Formicarium granules 200ml – beige

1x grid insert – 50mm – stainless steel
1x Formicarium plug for 50mm hole
1x Formicarium plug for 27mm hole
1x grid cap – 10mm – stainless steel

1x tank hose connector 27-14,16,20 mm – transparent
1x drinking trough 2ml – 360 degrees
1x bowl clear 1×20 – sponge
1x drinking trough clear 20ml – sponge
1x Mini thermo-hygrometer analog – display – hanging
1x Ant escape protection oil 10ml
1x Tweezers spring steel – wide – soft
1x Tweezers plastic transparent
1x plastic pipette 3ml
1x hand magnifier – 2x – 30mm
1x foam wiper 150x18x2,5mm
1x photo back – meadow – 20×10

Description:
This expandable starter set for Manica rubida contains not only the optimally adapted formicarium but also the appropriate accessories for keeping this ant species. The “clear 20ml – sponge” drinker is intended for water, the “2ml – 360 degree” drinker for the honeydew mix.

Important: Please moisten the substrate before use so that the mixture can bind and develop a firm hold in the ant farm. In addition, a dry and dusty substrate can lead to the ants’ airways being blocked and, in the worst case, the animals suffocating.

Notes on production
The glass is cut to size in accordance with DIN 1249 with a tolerance of +/- 1 mm. Additional break-out protection is essential for extremely small ant species.

Note on the blanched crickets:
Our blanched crickets are an easy way to provide your ants with freshly preserved protein food without having to feed live insects. The contained crickets (Acheta domesticus) have been gently blanched to ensure that nutritional values, taste and aroma are retained. In addition, the chitinous shell of the insects is softened in this way so that it can be digested more easily. The bonds of the collagen proteins are broken down so that the ants can utilize them better. Canned Acheta domesticus has the same nutritional value as live crickets, but is easier to digest.

The blanched crickets are not suitable for hunting ant species that require live food. (e.g. ponerines (great ants) such as Harpegnathos or Odontomachus)

Further advantages:
Guaranteed mite-free
Can be portioned
Sterilized and vacuumed
Without additives
Crickets from sustainable, purely organic breeding, fed with organic waste

Please note:
Can be kept in the fridge for about four days after opening. Longer shelf life if frozen.

Note on honeydew:
Contents: 10 ml
This is a natural product that we have refined after extensive testing in our laboratory and developed into a food that is very well accepted by ants. The reason for this is that unprocessed honeydew honey in its concentrated original form is not well accepted by ants and their metabolism.
Our honeydew was collected in the unpolluted wild mountain forests of Bulgaria. Honeydew is only produced for a very limited time, about two months in summer. It is therefore very rare. Due to the specific soil characteristics of the forests and the climate, essential nutrients are stored in the leaves of the trees, which are absorbed by the aphids. This is what makes this honeydew mix so desirable for ants.

Application:
Amount of food should be consumed within about 3 days.

Description:
Honeydew, unlike flower honey, is obtained from secretions of insects that suck on plants, such as aphids. Honeydew is a popular food source for many insects such as ants, bees and bumblebees. Bees and bumblebees lick it from the leaves or needles of various trees. Ants such as Lasius niger literally keep the aphids. They even defend them against predators and carry them to fresh shoots.

Honeydew is particularly popular with ants because of its somewhat different components. The main sugars in honeydew are sucrose and fructose, but smaller amounts of maltose, trehalose, melezitose, raffinose and other oligosaccharides are also found. In addition to sugar and water, honeydew also contains essential amino acids, minerals, trace elements, adenosines, phosphates and other ingredients such as vitamins.

Use:
For honey-eating ant species (Meliphagidae)
This is a supplementary feed
It can be offered to the animals as supplied. As the sugar concentration is reduced by the humidity and a fermentation process begins, the food should be replaced every 3 days. Clean the feeding bowl/tube thoroughly before reuse.
Once a pack has been opened, it should be kept tightly closed until the expiry date.

Nutritional information per 100 g:
approx. 2.7 % fats
of which saturated approx. 0.45 %
approx. 95 % carbohydrates
of which sugar approx. 71
approx. 2.85% protein

Minerals (potassium, calcium, copper, iron, sodium, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc and other trace elements) Amino acids (proline, leucine, phenylalanine, alanine, histidine, isoleucine, glutamic acid, arginine, aspartic acid, etc.) Organic acids Enzymes (enzymes)Flavorings Inhibins (antibacterial substances) Flowers Pollen

Storage:
To ensure the quality of the feed, the feed should be stored in a dark and dry place.

Note:
Supplementary feed for honey-eating ants.
Please refer to the package insert for composition, analytical ingredients, best-before date and batch number.

Information hotline +49 30 76687051

Responsible veterinary and food inspectorate:
Steglitz Veterinary Office
Königin-Luise-Str. 92
14195 Berlin