General
Camponotus mutilarius are a beautiful and rare addition to your collection.
Food
Camponotus mutilarius are not picky eaters. They love sugars that come from fruit, sugarwater or ant jellys. For protein the best food for them is fruitflies, mealworms, crickets and other smaller insects.
If you feed insects from the wild freeze or boil these insects to sterilize them. Skipping this step can introduce mites to your colony.
Humidity
Camponotus mutilarius does not need a damp nest. If you hydrate the nest regularly (once or twice a week) you should have no problem in keeping the humidity right for these ants. Always make sure the ants have an external watersource to drink from.
Temperature
Since Camponotus mutilarius is a tropical species they thrive under a heated setup. Heat part of the setup to provide the ants with a nice gradient (26-28c).
Hibernation
Camponotus mutilarius don’t require a diapause
Sting/bite
Camponotus mutilarius do not sting but they spray formic acid and major workers can cause a painful bite.
