Pristomyrmex brevispinosus

If you want a colony that grows quickly and stays lively, this Bornean ant delivers. Holding more than one queen lets the population build faster than a single-queen species, and the founding stage itself is more interesting with several queens working together. It comes from the rainforests of Southeast Asia and never pauses for winter, so there is activity to watch all year round. The fully claustral start is straightforward, and the main thing it asks for is steady tropical warmth and high humidity. Rated Intermediate, it makes a natural progression once your first colony is behind you.

An omnivore that splits its diet by job: workers fuel themselves on sugars while the developing brood is raised on insect protein. Keep nectar or jelly on tap and add small feeder insects two or three times a week.

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

Start in a test tube nursery and graduate to a larger nest as the colony spreads. This is a humidity-loving tropical ant, so choose a moisture-holding nest such as Ytong, aerated concrete or a 3D-printed hybrid that stays reliably damp, and connect it to a hydrated outworld. Keep the nest air high and top up moisture before it dries between waterings. Ring the arena edge with fluon (PTFE), a thin oil line, or talc and water to stop escapes. ANTonTOP formicaria and starter kits supply a damp nest, arena and barrier together as a ready set.

Steady tropical warmth is the rule for this one, with no seasonal swing to manage. Keep the nest at 24 to 27 C and the arena at 25 to 29 C. Humidity runs high, 65 to 80% in the nest and 55 to 70% in the arena, so choose a setup that holds moisture. Heat one end for a gentle gradient. There is no hibernation, this is a tropical ant, so feeding and warmth carry on without a seasonal break.

Growth is moderate and tends to gather pace once the colony is established, since more than one queen can add eggs to the pile and push the worker count along faster than a single-queen nest. You receive a queen, or several, with workers and brood, packed for transit and ready to expand in a warm, humid founding nest.

• Pristomyrmex is best known for Pristomyrmex punctatus, a relative that can reproduce clonally through worker-laid eggs, a striking case of an ant society without a conventional queen.
• Workers in the genus carry distinctive comb-like teeth on the mandibles, a feature behind the name Pristomyrmex, ‘saw ant’.
• These are small leaf-litter and ground ants of the Asian tropics, foraging in warm, humid forest floor where the litter rarely dries out.

Is Pristomyrmex brevispinosus good for beginners?

It is rated Intermediate, manageable for a second species once you can hold steady tropical humidity.

Does this Bornean ant need a winter rest?

No, it is tropical and stays active year-round, so keep feeding all seasons.

Does Pristomyrmex brevispinosus sting or bite?

Yes, it has a sting and a mild bite, but it is not an aggressive ant toward keepers.

How big do colonies get?

It is a polygyne species, so several queens can build a lively, growing colony.

How big is the queen?

The queen is about 6 mm, with workers at 2.5-4 mm.

How quickly does the colony grow?

Moderately, with extra pace possible when more than one queen is laying.

What do these tropical ants eat?

Insects such as crickets and flies for protein, plus sugar water, nectar or jelly for energy.

How is it shipped?

As queen(s) with workers and brood, with a heat or cool pack, sent within 24 h with tracking 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.