Pheidole dugasi

This is the one to pick when you want scale. It is among the larger members of the genus, and the contrast is the whole appeal: tiny minors scurrying alongside hefty soldiers with massive heads built to mill seeds and hold the nest. From a warm Mediterranean-desert region, it settles into a steady, no-rest rhythm and just keeps adding numbers. Given time and room, it can develop into one of the bigger colonies you can keep, so it suits a keeper with patience and the housing to match. The size and population growth are what keep you watching.

This is a heavy feeder for a Pheidole: sugars and honeydew keep the foragers going, while the powerful 8-12 mm majors process tougher protein that drives a large, fast-growing brood. Keep a carbohydrate source out at all times and offer plenty of insects as numbers build.

★★★ readily · ★★ moderately · ★ occasionally · ✗ not eaten

Start the queen in a test tube and wait until workers blanket the floor before rehousing. This North African ant nests in fairly damp ground, so a moisture-holding nest in aerated concrete (Ytong) or gypsum with a single damp corner suits it. Because the colony can climb into the tens of thousands, jump to a large nest early and add modules ahead of the curve. Minors are minute, so seal joints and keep a fluon, oil, or talc-and-water barrier on the arena rim. An ANTonTOP formicarium and starter kit give you the nest, arena and barrier with room to grow.

Keep the nest at 23-27 °C and the arena at 24-28 °C, with humidity around 60-75% in the nest and 50-65% in the arena. A one-sided heat gradient lets the queen and brood sit in the warmest zone while foragers range across cooler ground. No winter rest is needed for this North African species, so hold the warmth and keep food coming throughout the year.

Growth is fast and, with a ceiling near 50,000 workers, this colony can become properly large once the first majors arrive and recruitment takes off. Eggs reach worker stage in about 3-5 weeks, so warmth keeps the pace up. You receive a laying queen with workers and brood, ready to scale into one of the bigger colonies the genus offers.

• Pheidole is one of the most diverse ant genera on Earth, with more than a thousand species described so far.
• A few Pheidole top out at tens of thousands of workers, putting them among the larger colonies in the subfamily Myrmicinae.
• The majors’ massive heads are mostly muscle, giving them the bite force to mill seeds and break down hard food for the colony.
• Like nearly all Myrmicinae, these ants keep a working sting, though in Pheidole it is mild and rarely noticed by keepers.

Is Pheidole dugasi good for beginners?

It is rated intermediate. It is manageable, but its eventual size and feeding demands make a little experience helpful.

Does it need hibernation?

No, a winter rest is not required; keep it warm year-round.

Does it sting?

It has a sting and a mild bite, but it is harmless to keepers in practice.

How big does the colony get?

Up to around 50,000 workers, one of the largest in the genus.

How large is the queen?

The queen is a big 11-13 mm; minor workers 4.5-6 mm and soldiers 8-12 mm.

How fast does it grow?

Fast, with strong acceleration once soldiers appear.

What does it eat?

Sugar water or jelly plus plenty of insects such as crickets and flies.

How is it shipped and will it arrive alive?

It ships as a queen with workers and brood, with a heat or cool pack, dispatched within 24 hours and tracked for safe live arrival.

Escape prevention. Coat the inner rim of every open arena with fluon (PTFE), or use talc-and-water or an oil barrier as a backup, and keep a tight, fine-mesh lid on top. Check the barrier regularly, since dust, condensation and feeding debris break a fluon line over time. Keep tubing connectors tight and seal any gaps in the nest.

Keeping reminders. Always offer fresh water and never let the nest dry out completely. Give carbohydrates continuously and protein a few times a week, and remove uneaten insect prey within 24 hours before it moulds. Keep the formicarium out of direct sunlight and away from constant vibration, which stresses a young colony. A water-filled test tube plugged with cotton makes an ideal spare incubator whenever you need one.

Before you buy – do not rehouse too early. Have a test-tube setup or a small formicarium with an outworld and a working barrier ready before your colony arrives. A founding colony grows slowly at first, which is normal. Moving a small colony into a large nest too soon invites mould, mites and stress, and the workers die off one by one. Keep the colony in its open test tube on the arena, plug the nest entrance with cotton, and open up the next chambers only once the colony fills roughly 10-15% of the space.

What we ship. Every colony ships with a live-arrival guarantee, backed by our 24h unboxing-video guarantee: if the queen does not arrive alive, we reship free. Parcels travel with DHL, InPost (PL) or EMS, with a heat or cold pack to suit the season, packed discreetly and securely. We ship across the EU and worldwide, with free shipping over the Europe threshold.