But the ants didn't come right away. The box told me to order them, and when the weather was okay, they shipped them in a tiny vial, about 2 dozen Harvester Ants. So we poked holes in their little green gelatin (This space-age green is not the white sand we had as kids,) and then as we were just about to drop them in, I read on the tube, "Place ants in fridge for 15 minutes." Whew, just in time. I had been imagining them crawling quickly all over before we could snap on their lid. The cold calmed them and they were easy to drop into their new home.
They have been quite fun to watch, up to a point. They made a few holes/tunnels right off, then just sort of settled in. That was it. They don't do tricks, they don't spell fun words like Some Pig or anything... but they have been on field trips: They were at Aubrey's for a few days, accompanying Whitney to Happy Apple pre-school. Then they stayed at John and Wendy's for a few days. John was fascinated by them and knew to only gently turn the glass, and not tap it at all.
I did do something at odds with the instructions included by Uncle Milton - I fed them. He tells us that the green Jello will provide enough food and water for them, and then they'll live like 8 weeks. But that didn't sit well with me, they seemed lethargic or something. I read about harvesters , they like seeds. So I dug a sunflower seed out of my granola and dropped that in. And I squirted in a little water, too.
They LOVED it. They munched a while, then moved the leftover pieces to their pantry. And they were now more active!! More tunnels started appearing. I think they have a better chance for a long and peaceful life.
However, today has been an adventuresome day for them - and nerve-racking for me. These ants are quick and wily and opportunistic critters. Today when I moved them I accidentally popped off their long lid, and before I could even blink, about 6 of them were out and exploring the Island. I tried brushing them onto a plate, but finally figured out I could use a paper and drop them into a clean jar. WHEW! I cooled them in the fridge before their return.Then just a little while ago, a pan lid dropped from where it hangs over the island, knocking their roof off once again, and ZOOM, 8 of them were out in a flash! I yelled for Jim and we quickly gathered them up... just call us Ant wranglers, we're getting good at this.
I started laughing as I was putting them into the fridge once again, I was basically putting the little girls in time-out.
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