About Atta texana
American Species- Texas Leaf cutter ant
Temperature: Nest 72°F - 78°F
(Optimal nest temp: 76°F)
Outworld 72°F - 78°F (Don’t add heat)
Humidity: Nest 85% - 98% Outworld 50- 75%
Hibernation: Yes, reduced foraging during the winter months lasting anywhere in between 2-3 months. Keep the temperature the same. Do not cool them. Primary died in winter months is dried foods.
Diet: Fresh & dried rose petals (make sure fresh roses don’t have pesticides!), fresh rose leaves, oats, black berry leaves, Texas sage (fresh or dry), among many other plants and flowers. Again, we can not stress this point enough. Do not feed your ants plant material that you are not 100% sure is pesticide free. A small amount of pesticide on a single leaf can wipe out an entire colony, queen(s) included.
Colony form: Polygyne (multiple queens per colony)
Average workers per colony: 10 million. (In the wild).This is not an exaggeration.
This species can grow quickly in captivity with proper care and plenty of plant material. However, contrary the popular belief they will only get as large as you want them. Even with constant daily feedings it is impossible for them to reach wild colony size due to the immense amount of foliage required. However with that being said, colonies in captivity are still very impressive to watch and are featured in Zoo's across America.
Founding Queen: Fully claustral (Plant material is not required in propagation of the fungus garden before the queens 1st generation of workers has hatched.)
Nest type: Plastic or glass display cases or other containers with a plaster base in the fungus chamber . 3+ containers for: Outworld, nest/fungus garden, refuse/trash area.
Size: Queen- 18-20mm
Worker/Soldier 4mm - 14mm
Bite/ Sting/ Formic acid: Bite
Description: Atta texana, Texas leaf-cutting ant
Atta in general are significantly more Impressive than the other leaf cutters we offer here at AntsEmporium. This species can become absolutely massive in the wild as well as in captivity if enough space and resources are provided to them. In the wild mature colonies can strip a tree of leaves in a matter of hours. Atta texana leaf-cutting queens are massive relative to most other ants. You will not have any difficulty recognizing the queen among her workers. Watch this species as they cut plant material and add it to their fungus garden. As the colony’s grows in numbers, their foraging trails become more and more impressive. This species is also highly polymorphic meaning worker ants come in many different sizes!
Note: Atta texana colonies are shipped in insulated shipping boxes overnight. We also include cold packs in our shipments on those extra hot days.
Tip: Never over the water the plaster nest box your colony is using for their fungus garden. Add a drop or two via external hydration tube and wait for it to slowly soak up before adding more. The surface of the plaster should never be over saturated as this can directly harm the fungus garden. A few drops of water per week is usually all that is needed. After receiving your colony, allow them to settle in lfor at least a week before you move them to a different leaf cutter setup. If you try to move them to a new setup without giving them time to build back their fungus garden and recover from shipping, they will likely not survive. Never place in direct sunlight. Please reach out to us if you have any questions about this species.
