Signs your ant colony is neglected and in dire need of ….

I had to remind myself the next time I saw this happen, I would FILM it. Well I forgot at first (at first I was doing emergency measures) but eventually did manage to capture SOME of the aftermath of not checking this busy Camponotus colony in a few days. Yes, they have been going through their water blazingly fast lately, which means they need FREQUENT water checks. But I hadn’t done it frequently enough. So yesterday, sure enough, maybe 20% of the workers were feverishly running around the outworld, trying to escape, and all their water sources were dry. If they were HUNGRY the activity would look different… not so scattered and desperate to climb out at the corners.

In any case yes, they were looking for water, and no, this time it wasn’t too late. It’s only too late if the queen dies, or if all workers die and your queen is a dumb, helpless queen (I’m looking at you, Prenolepis). With 1 smart queen and a few workers you can recover.

One colony (Veromessor) I found 99% of the workers out of the nest and in the outworld. Even worse, 75% were dead already. The queen and a few workers were still desperately spread about the outworld, trying to climb out. I gave them water, eventually herded the queen back inside the nest, and the colony went on to recover completely.

Emergency rescue means dropping water in wherever the ants are clumped. They are focused on escaping, so the ones climbing the wall may not know you’ve put water 2 inches away at the entrance. Just water here and there and they will be busy drinking. Also water the nest’s drinking system(s), of course. For hours after you provide water, you’ll see ants with a social stomach sharing liquid around. By the next day you should see the ants back at work in the nest.

For ants without a social stomach, the queen herself must be able to find water, so make sure to either get water near her if she’s single-mindedly climbing a wall, or alternatively you can chase her gently back into the nest where you’ve refilled their water supply. She’ll probably find the water quickly if she’s been living there long enough to know the layout.

If you’ll be gone a long time be sure to provide vacation water reservoirs.