How to Catch Ants for an Ant Farm
An ant farm is a fun and educational way to learn more about nature's little creatures. An ant farm allows anyone to see how the ants build intricate tunnels and to watch their complex social interaction. Make sure that the ants you catch for your ant farm are large ones, so they will stay in the farm without escaping through its air holes.
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Instructions
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Find a suitable colony of ants. The ants should be large and black. Red ants can potentially be fire ants, which are dangerous predators and give you a nasty sting. Look in wooded areas for ant colonies, or find ants outdoors and follow them back to their home.
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Mix a thick solution of sugar water by mixing a small amount of water with sugar in a wide-mouth jar that has a lid. The solution shouldn't be deep or watery enough to drown the ants. Make it so it has a thin layer along the bottom that will attract the ants and bring them into the jar to investigate. To make it easier for the ants to find it, dip a finger into the solution and then run your finger up inside of the jar and onto the outside of it.
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Leave the jar opened near the ant colony and leave it alone for a couple of hours. When you return, there should be several ants inside the jar. Place the lid on the jar and bring the ants back home and place them into the ant farm. If you need more ants, repeat the procedure to trap more of them. If you put the jar back in the same spot as before, it will not take as long after the first entrapment because the ants will have left a chemical trail to lead them to the jar.
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Put the ant farm in the refrigerator for a few minutes before adding new ants if you already have a large ant population. The cold will slow down their movement without harming the ants.
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Tips & Warnings
Be sure not to collect or touch red ants because they could be fire ants, which can give you a painful sting.
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