Camponotus nicobarensis Care Guide: Keeping the Fast-Growing Asian Carpenter Ant

4 days ago

5 min read

Camponotus nicobarensis is a carpenter ant from South and Southeast Asia and one of the most popular Camponotus species in the hobby. Colonies are strongly polymorphic: slim, reddish-brown workers forage next to majors with big orange heads. The species is active, easy to feed and forgiving of small mistakes, which makes it the best choice if you want to start with your first exotic ant.

This guide covers everything you need to keep a healthy colony, from a queen in a test tube to a large colony full of majors. You will notice that we rarely give exact numbers. Every colony develops differently, even under the same conditions, so we explain what to look for instead.

Camponotus nicobarensis at a glance

Origin: South and Southeast Asia
Colony: one or several queens, with one queen laying the eggs
Growth: a calm start, then very fast in warm conditions
Temperature: warm, with a heated side outside the winter
Winter rest: recommended, from November until March
Humidity: relatively dry, never too wet
Diet: sugars and insects, they eat practically everything
Difficulty: beginner friendly

Appearance and size

Workers are slim and reddish-brown with long legs, the typical build of the Tanaemyrmex subgenus, also known as the slim carpenter ants. You can read more about this group in our guide to the subgenera of Camponotus.

The species is strongly polymorphic. The smallest workers (minors) are roughly 6 to 8 mm, while the majors can reach around 12 to 14 mm and have large orange heads with strong mandibles. Queens are about 15 to 17 mm. The first workers a young queen raises are always small. Majors only start to appear once the colony is bigger and well fed, so do not worry if your first workers look tiny.

One queen or several?

Whether queens live together depends on the region a colony comes from. Some populations accept several queens, others do not. We have always kept Camponotus nicobarensis with multiple queens without any problems, and in our shop you can choose colonies with one up to five queens.

No matter how many queens a colony has, one dominant queen lays all the eggs. The other queens simply live alongside her. A multi-queen colony is nice to watch, but do not expect it to grow several times faster. Never try to combine queens from different colonies yourself, as that usually ends in a fight.

Founding a colony

Queens of Camponotus nicobarensis found fully claustral. After mating, the queen seals herself in and raises her first workers on her own reserves, so she does not need any food until those workers appear. A simple test tube setup is all she needs. Keep it dark and quiet and check on her as little as possible.

How long it takes before the first workers appear depends mostly on temperature. A warm queen is faster than a queen at room temperature, so we do not give a fixed timeline. As with every Camponotus, the start is calm. Once the first workers are there, offer a drop of sugar water and a small insect, and give the colony a small outworld to forage in.

Growth: a calm start, then fast

For a Camponotus, the time from egg to worker is relatively short. That is why a warm, well-fed colony can grow explosively once it has a decent group of workers. Mature colonies can reach several thousand workers.

How fast your colony grows depends on heat, the number of queens and the colony itself. Two colonies kept side by side under the same conditions can still develop completely differently, and that is part of what makes ant keeping fun. If your nest fills up faster than you would like, feed a bit less. Less food simply slows the growth down.

Temperature and heating

Outside the winter period, heating is recommended. Heat one side of the nest so the colony can choose its own spot. The ants move their brood towards the warmth when they want it and away from it when it gets too warm. On the warm side, a temperature in the high twenties (roughly 26 to 30°C) works well.

Keep in mind that the setting on your heat mat is not the temperature inside the nest. A thick nest on a heat mat set to 25°C can still be close to room temperature on the inside. Feel how warm the nest itself is and watch where the ants keep their brood. That tells you more than the number on the thermostat. A heat mat with a temperature controller makes it easy to adjust.

Winter rest

A winter rest is recommended. How strict it needs to be depends on where a colony comes from. Most Camponotus nicobarensis sold online comes from a region in China where winters are cooler, and those colonies do best with a quieter period each year.

From November until March, stop heating and keep the colony slightly cooler than the rest of the year, for example in an unheated room. The rest is much less strict than for European species, so there is no need for a fridge. Activity drops and the queen lays fewer eggs. In spring, turn the heating back on and the colony will pick up speed again.

Humidity and water

Camponotus nicobarensis does not like it too wet. Keep the nest relatively dry with one area that stays slightly moist. Hydrate now and then, but never soak the nest. If you see water drops, condensation or mold, it is too wet. If all the ants crowd around the moist area, it is time to add a little water.

Always give the colony a separate water source in the outworld, such as a test tube with water and a cotton plug. That way they can drink whenever they want, whatever the humidity inside the nest.

Feeding

Feeding is easy because this species eats practically everything. Give sugars in the form of sugar water, sugar jelly or honey water, and insects for protein, such as fruit flies, crickets, mealworms or cockroaches. The workers run on sugar, while the queen and larvae need protein to grow.

Adjust the amount to the size of your colony and remove leftovers before they mold. Avoid insects caught outside, as these can bring in mites or pesticides. And remember that feeding less is the easiest way to slow down a colony that grows too fast.

Housing

This is a very versatile species, so all our nests are suitable. Start with the test tube and a small outworld, and move the colony to a nest once the test tube gets crowded. Do not give a small colony a huge nest straight away, as ants feel safer in a space that fits their size.

For larger colonies, the Avalon Ant Nest with its large chambers works perfectly. The big majors have plenty of room and you can see everything that happens inside. Connect it to an outworld that gives the colony room to forage. Our guide on setting up an outworld explains how.

Behaviour, biting and escapes

Camponotus nicobarensis is active and easy to watch. Workers forage openly in the outworld, and you will often see majors patrolling or carrying large prey. Majors can bite when they feel threatened. It is not dangerous, but you will notice it, so work calmly and keep your hands out of the outworld where you can.

These ants are also good climbers. Use an anti-escape barrier on the walls of your outworld and make sure lids and connections close properly. Read how to stop your ants from escaping for the options that work best.

Is Camponotus nicobarensis right for you?

If you want your first exotic ant, this is the species we recommend most. It is forgiving, easy to feed and grows quickly once it gets going, and the majors with their orange heads always draw attention. The only things to plan for are some heating, a calm winter rest and a secure outworld.

You can find our colonies, with one up to five queens, on the Camponotus nicobarensis product page.