Gel Ant Farms: Fun Science Project or Unethical Ant Trap?
Gel ant farms have become a popular choice for classrooms, science enthusiasts, and curious individuals interested in observing ants up close. These transparent enclosures, filled with a typically blue gel, allow people to watch ants dig tunnels and go about their routines. But while these farms can offer a fascinating educational experience, they raise ethical concerns about the treatment and well-being of the ants.
In the ant-keeping community, it is general consensus that gel ant farms are a cruel and unethical and unsustainable way of keeping ants. In this article, we talk about why, and potential alternatives for the wellbeing of the ants, and the experiment.
An assortment of gel ant farms on the market
The Appeal of Gel Ant Farms
Gel ant farms are undeniably intriguing. The clear designs allow for an unobstructed view of the ants’ activities, and they are filled with brightly colored gel, marketed both as a substrate for the ants to tunnel through and to supply them with the nutrients and water they need to eliminate the need for regular maintenance.
Cruelty and Ant Farms
Unfortunately, the marketing behind gel farms couldn't be further from the truth.
Generally, gel ant farms are designed solely to keep ants alive for a few months at a time. They are a short term habitat for the ants, in the same way that a room filled with peanut butter is a short term habitat for a human. Although the gel may have enough sugar to keep the ants digging for the next bite, it does not have the nutrients required for ant bodies to function. Even more so, it does not have any of the protein required to let the young grow up.
In modern ant farms, individual worker ants should be able to live for around 1-3, years depending on the species, and colonies should be able to last 5-15 years.
For many, the convenience of gel ant farms is their main draw. They're a quick setup where, the organisms may survive despite their homes, rather than because of them-- a modern equivalent of a goldfish in a cup. In the best cases, the ants may seem active only because they have no way to replenish their stomachs without chewing into more unnutritious mush.
Because of the difficulty in collecting queens and the inability for gel ant farms to sustain ant colonies with growing babies, what you observe in gel farms are only small.groups of workers. Given that ants are colonial insects, ants sold for gel ant farms are typically workers taken from their mother colonies.
Much of the issue becomes the following question: Why should you leave ants to die in a habitat where they're constantly looking for their home colonies, when more ethical, and exciting options exist? The best way to keep an ant colony healthy, happy, and fun to observe, is to keep a colony with a queen, and to keep them in an ant farm designed for the long term.
Vial of Red Venomous Harvester Ants, Commonly Sold for short-term Ant Farms
Gel Farms are Boring Ant Keeping
Even outside an ethics perspective, one of the problems gel ant farms is that, compared to the range of behaviors you would normally observe.
Because of the difficulty in collecting queens and the inability for gel ant farms to sustain ant colonies with growing babies, what you observe ants do in gel farms is a fraction of what they do in the wild, or in modern formicariums, or ant farms.
On the other hand, long term ant-keeping has queens with workers. If you're in check out the assortment available here!
In almost all long term ant farms, you can observe the following behaviours, which you wouldn't otherwise get to in short term gel farms.
- Queens laying eggs, and being protected by workers
- Workers feeding, and taking care of all different stages of babies or brood
- Ant colonies grow and increase in number, even producing new winged queens when mature.
- Ants will build food storage for dead insects or seeds
- Ants will make garbage dumps, and graveyards
Fire Ant Queen Surrounded by Workers
Depending on the species of ants you have, you can observe
- Large and active species, such as field ants, begin to recognize your shadow and figure out when mealtime is.
- Many species of ants which produce soldiers will start producing workers which are up to double or triple the size at a specific point
- Seed-eating ants, like harvester ants, maintaining grain stores and even making "ant bread"
- Fungus growing species, like leaf cutter ants trim leaves and flowers to create fertilizer to farm an edible fungus
Black Harvester Ant Colony in an Esthetic Ants Mesh Nest. Note the seed storage on the top right, and brood chambers in the bottom left. You can get one here with Canada Ant Colony
Do Ants Deserve Ethical Consideration?
A central question in this debate is whether ants, as insects, warrant the same ethical considerations as larger animals. Some people argue that because ants are simpler organisms, they’re less likely to experience suffering in the same way. However, research suggests that ants are far more sophisticated than we might think. They display complex behaviors, can communicate effectively within their colonies, and even show signs of learning. Their social structures are intricate, with roles divided among workers, queens, and soldiers.
Given their complexity, it’s worth questioning whether it’s ethical to keep ants in an artificial environment like a gel farm. If these creatures do experience stress or discomfort, why put them in habitats in which we know they'll suffer? As our understanding of animal welfare evolves, we’re becoming more mindful of how animals, even small ones, are treated in captivity.
And, finally, if for no other reason, we should try to keep ants in humane ways, just to be kind.
Ethical Ant Farms
For those interested in observing ants without the ethical concerns that come with gel farms, there are better options available. Traditional soil-based ant farms can more mimic the ants' natural environment, but often at the expense of visibility. The ants may enjoy the habitat more, but because they can hide away in the soil, you might not.
A compromise between the two might be to look at substrate free modern formicariums. They're designed with hydration systems so ants can live in them long term, but are substrate free, so you can see everything that happens in the colony, instead of having it blocked off by soil.
If you're interested in ant farms, you can check out them out at Down The Ant Hill
If you're interested in full ant farms with kits, please check out this link.
Carpenter ant colony in a formicarium
Conclusion
While gel ant farms may seem like an easy and fun way to learn about ants, they come with significant ethical concerns. The lac lack of social complexity, and potential health risks make them less than ideal for those who care about animal welfare. As we continue to advance in our understanding of ethics and animal treatment, it's important to reconsider whether gel ant farms are appropriate for educational use—or if they’re simply a relic of a time when we knew less.
For anyone interested in learning more about ants, there are plenty of more ethical and sustainable ways to observe and appreciate these fascinating creatures. You can purchase a kit from Down The Ant Hill here
