I Helped My Termites Create a FUNGUS Comb (Experiment)

I have always dreamed of keeping leafcutter ants because of their ability to farm their own food, i.e. a fungus which the leafcutter ants eat. However, when I discovered that termite colonies I was raising (Macrotermes gilvus) were also fungus-farmers, I sought out to help them establish their vital fungal combs so they could thrive! I also learned in this video how Termitomyces mushrooms result from termite activities! Hope you enjoy this week's info-packed journey of discovery, as we experiment with different setups to try and help my termites create their fungus combs. Ant/termite love forever! This video was shot in 4K Ultra HD resolution. #Termites #Mushroom #Experiment
Special thanks to Cicada Fun for all the termite help and guidance!
Informational References:
www.worldagroforestry.org/blo...
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macro...
Join the Great AC SENATE to get access to new perks/voting powers on this channel:
/ @antscanada
Click here to SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/tlCQJZ
Directed/Written/DOP/Edited by AntsCanada
Executive Producer RJ Garcia
Special thanks to nature photographer and biologist Alex Wild for allowing his photos to be used in our videos. Check out his amazing nature photography and order some prints: www.alexanderwild.com
If you're new to the channel, catch up on your "AntsCanada Lore" with this playlist of the complete history of the ants of this channel: goo.gl/hVFxc2
Visit us at www.antscanada.com
A brand new video is uploaded on this channel every Saturday at 8AM EST (with frequent bonus videos) so be sure to SUBSCRIBE to the channel to catch every ant video we release! Thank you for the support.
Get our new AC Hybrid Nest 2.0 ant farm or
'All You Need' Hybrid 2.0 Gear Pack (complete kit): www.antscanada.com/product-ca...
▶▶▶We've got new Ant T-shirts! Check them out here: goo.gl/PjnB7t
▶▶▶Got a question about ants or AntsCanada? Visit our website FAQ: goo.gl/mJPEqn
▶▶▶Want an ant farm? Check out our ant shop. We ship worldwide: goo.gl/I4l7Ho
▶▶▶Need to buy an ant colony for your ant farm, or do you have ant colonies to sell/give away? Find out more about our GAN Project: goo.gl/jzo9Lc
Join us at the new AntsCanada Ant Forum: forum.antscanada.com
▶AntsCanada Official Website www.antscanada.com
▶Like us on / antscanada
▶Follow us on / antscanada
▶Follow us on / antscanada
Email us at [e-mail] for any questions or inquiries.
About AntsCanada.com: We believe ants are the most amazing creatures on the planet, and every new discovery about their micro world gives us some profound insights into the world around us and ourselves. Bringing the ant farm and love of ant keeping to a whole new level, we are dedicated to show the world the joys of keeping big and healthy pet ant colonies. Shipping worldwide since 2009, we are innovators of ant keeping products for ant lovers and museums alike.

[@cicadafun]

It's been such a pleasure talking with you and navigating you through your journey of keeping fungus-growing termites. Keep up the good work! 😁

[@kamilahmad2893]

Wow so cool

[@AntsCanada]

Thank you so much, man! You've been such an incredible resource of information tbrough this whole thing! Termites are pretty awesome!

[@White_Martian]

it the guy yoooooooooooooooooooo

[@mattmccaughen8082]

Love watching your shows on Sat keep up the good work

[@catlover3551]

Hi cicada fun and antscanada

[@woodboy544]

Fun Fact: the design of the fungus comb is legitimately the greatest amount of surface area possible while maintaining structural integrity

[@BlackViperMWG]

As with the bees comb, no?

[@hugoalvord2779]

Looks like a morel fungus fruiting body. Same function makes the same form I guess!

[@MationGaming]

Same with brains and intestines. They all look similar for the same reason

[@jorisvankeimpema4104]

Yeah, because THE HEXAGON IS THE BESTAGON

[@merikmalhads1676]

It is done that way because the fungus needs to be able to breathe. Remember that unlike plants which can produce their own oxygen through photosynthesis, to breathe just like animal tissue. I was actually going to comment it separately but since you already brought up the surface area point, it just seems better to tag it on here. An important note is that this looks quite similar to the internal breathing structures of most insects: Unlike vertebrates like us how have our oxygen delivered through our circulatory system, insects get their oxygen directly from their respiratory system which weaves through their body rather than being handled by a distinct organ structure like our lungs. Grasshoppers are often used as the textbook insect body and if you search "grasshopper pulmonary structures" on google as I did just now you can see some of it yourself. For any who want a more in depth explanation of what they are seeing: Before I start, I'd like to remind people (or let them know) that insects and other protostomes will often have their nerve chords running along their front or ventral side instead of the back or dorsal side of us deuterostomes so that is why you see structures where we would normally find our spines. With that out the way, the most important two structures in this network are the spiracles and the air sacs. The spiracles in grasshoppers are advanced structures often found only in flying insect species as they have a sphincter muscle guarding the entrance to their pulmonary network. More simple spiracles are literally just openings and you often find those in species you can kill by covering them with salt as the drying out of any breathing structure (yes even ours so you can technically kill yourself by snorting a ton of salt) will cause an inability for gas exchange to happen suffocating the individual. The air sacs on the other hand are the closest to our lungs that insects get as they are structures which push air out and pull it in to cycle oxygen faster. The air sacs, like the more guarded spiracles are only found in species that actually need to breath faster and so are usually only found in insects who need to support flight muscles. As the termites have soft bodies, you can actually watch their air sacs pumping but just remember they don't exactly breathe like we do, it just looks very similar. Well I think that covers all of it. Just remember though that just like the insects, the fungi still needs to breathe so the structures of the chambers as well as the comb-like structure of the fungal growth media are all used to increase the gas exchange between the fungi and the air will have to maximize the surface area of contact just like our alveoli, the insect's air-sac powered tracheal network and even combustion engine air intakes (guess what we based that on). If you want to take away something away of the biochemistry of why it needs to both have high surface area and be wet note that, for oxygen to be dissolved into our body fluids, it needs to be contacting oxygen poor fluids with almost no barrier (we have a literally one cell thick layer between our lung's blood and the air, the insect's have their hemolymph [their blood] bathing their trachea, and the fugus's mycellia [that white fuzz looking stuff] have cells in direct contact with open air). Ant and termite fungal agriculture is then an architectural battle to both maintain a solid structure (like the various breathing structures or growth media) while maximizing the one-cell layer contact with the air

[@Lathland]

As someone who adores ants and has had a few colonies myself I am loving this termite series as honestly I know NOTHING about them - Fantastic to learn about all of this, so much I didn't know and It's wonderful to see the progress being made here!!

[@AntsCanada]

Same! Termites are a whole new world!

[@kadenthelegend2194]

Didn't expect to see you here

[@Redicule_research._ridiculous]

Lathland! Cosmoteer is a series I wish to be continued 😜

[@john.d.rockefeller2538]

Love your from the depths stuff!

[@ramenizer8952]

didnt expect the glorious lathrix in here with the same hobby like me

[@derpderpin1568]

That honeycomb structure gives them optimal surface area for growing as much as possible in a limited underground space. It's pretty amazing how they evolved to be so efficient.

[@nobpyxl5389]

It’s been more than 200 million years so of course they would

[@Darwinism001]

The "fuzz" on the comb is the mycelium, which is part of the fungus. It looks quite healthy!

[@TechBirb]

*gasp* a mushroom wizard

[@kittycatkaii3780]

*celebratory applause

[@ijlayugan4149]

I love how Ants Canada doesn't think about just keeping a collection of ants. He has his own rules that benefits himself and the ecosystem. He doesn't just take any ant colony he finds, not even if he really wanted them. He always thinks ahead of what would happen if he were to take care of the species.

[@LordDragox412]

Yeah, he always thinks ahead, that's why so many of his termite colonies died...

[@darwinskeeper421]

I respect Ants Canada's determination to do the right thing even if that means not being able to do what he wants to do.

[@tamarrajames3590]

@@LordDragox412 He IS taking advice from a person with more termite experience than he has, and he doesn’t pretend to know everything. The keeping of any species is susceptible to any number of things that can cause a colony to fail, just as most mated pairs of termites or fertilized Queen ants do not succeed in Nature. That is why so many are involved in each nuptial flight.🖤🇨🇦

[@benandsarahherrick9415]

Aren’t we all 😀😀😀😀

[@elylew]

What about the honeypot and Dracula ants? Those are from the American Southwest and Madagascar, respectively. I guess they wouldn't stand a chance where he lives and he was only keeping a small number. Also, the original Dracula ant species is highly endangered :(

[@zaralia5297]

You should do all you can to support the wild termite nest in your yard, and kind of 'farm' a wild termite colony and see if you can get those mushrooms growing in your yard, turning it into a mushroom garden. You help them and they give you the mushrooms you enjoy.

[@AntsCanada]

Now that I know what I know, when the season comes around again (Aug-Oct) when the termite mushrooms sprout, I will definitely check all the mounds on my property for the mushrooms! I can't wait!

[@catandfoxworldbuilding]

Probably not what most people use your content for, but you'd be amazed how helpful your videos are for world building and speculative biology. Its amazing really.

[@timothywells1632]

Regarding the mushrooms coming up after lightning storms...lightning causes a reaction in the air that results in higher nitrogen rates in the soil. This is why, if you garden, you'll find your plants looking greener, bigger, and more vibrant after a storm...it's not just the water from the rain...it's the nitrogen from the lightning. I wonder if that's not also the case with these mushrooms. If so, you would probably need to keep a colony outside where it is exposed to outside air during a lightning storm in order to get mushrooms. Would it be possible to keep a colony in your aviary? I know that it is exposed to outside air at the top.

[@AntsCanada]

Oh, how interestig!!! Perhaps that could be it!

[@lisandrob.leopatri3324]

but if that is the case, can you have the same result adding nitrogen to the soil in an artficial way?

[@timothywells1632]

Yes, I was wondering about artificial options like nitrogen/fertilizer spikes. But I'm pretty sure nitrogen is part of the puzzle. This is part of the reason that, in the middle of a drought, you can irrigate all you want, but you still won't get the results you would have if you had regular storms. Which makes me wonder about artificial means. Most likely, it would work, but it might not produce the same results in nature. I think about aquarium keeping. Freshwater aquascapers supplement CO2 to help encourage plant growth. Reef keepers have to supplement all kinds of nutrients and other things to keep corals healthy and growing. We have found artificial ways of mimicking nature, but it's still not quite the same results as you find in nature itself.

[@velarde3412]

All of this idea are great but won't birds Attack on the mounds or eat the termites foraging?

[@timothywells1632]

@@velarde3412 I was wondering about that. That's a question for antscanada to answer.

[@Flippokid]

As a hobby mushroom forager I'm immediately intrigued by this! That's a great find!

[@dcarmeloi]

I can see this possibly working on an industrial scale and it would be a much better way to include the insect world in our food supply system rather than constantly spraying them with stuff that then poisons us.

[@Vermikun]

It would be great to be able to use a symbiotic method in order to boost the result. I can feel that the topic at hand here won't just be for mushroom, but also other type of fungus/plant

[@BacentRekkes]

This video has better writing, storyline, and suspense than many AAA games now. This is why I keep watching these videos~

[@MGJerry69]

AntsCanada: "Aww man, I can't have leafcutter ants 'cause they are not native to my area." Fungus-farming termites: *"Allow us to introduce ourselves."* Edit (9 min into the video): Fungus-farming termites: *"Allow us to introduce ourselves (again)."*

[@imalittleeggroll]

I find this channel one of the most fascinating, informational, entertaining, interactive channels on my roster!!! I’ve never been more TEAM TERMITES in my life!!!

[@AntsCanada]

Thank you so much! Ant/termite love forever!

[@imalittleeggroll]

@@AntsCanada No, THANK YOU! My daughter was anti-ALL-things-insect. We watch your channel and now I’ll find her crouched down intently watching insect life! She will even relocate any indoor insects outside. You’ve helped change her perspective ❤️

[@BakuBiotch]

This is the most wholesome comment i have ever seen 🥲

[@AntsCanada]

Greetings Ant Lovers/AC Family, this is definitely one of my favourite episodes on this channel, and it's not even ANTS! LOL! It's also soooo long! Hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it, and if you did, I'd truly appreciate it if you could give it a LIKE as it would really help a lot, SHARE the video, and SUBSCRIBE (hit the BELL and Select ALL for Notifications Squad) to join our every growing AC Family! Ant/termite love forever! So guys, which colony is your favourite?

[@Death-cm3nk]

no sound on the vid

[@yellowguy1672]

What happens to the green empire???

[@zafloridaman9477]

4th reply

[@antlife4289]

Where’s the Phönix empire

[@easyben21]

Rooting for A, but D is my favourite, I love their dome!

[@archlyner1339]

So they're been here all along? I've always been dreaming of seeing a leaf cutter ant colony because of their farming ability, and just wow there we have it's termite counterpart my goodness I'm mind blown. Never heard of this my entire life not until now. Great vid

[@hgbugalou]

It's very awesome you respect your local ecosystem enough to not allow your passion to threaten it. Many pet keepers do not bother considering this, and its part of the reason so areas have massive invasive species issues. Good on you.

[@philip4534]

My graduate research group was looking into novel antibiotics. I wish I had seen this in my first year in that lab. I’d maybe have been able to convince my PI to farm termites and discover the anti fungal that the termites use

[@Vermikun]

sounds like a good topic to research. I always feel that colony insects may have something we don't know that are great for "house-keeping" their colony.

[@Rejic]

you';re gonna need one big setup by the time those mushrooms begin to grow.

[@nitrusdrexler1189]

I love how Mother Nature decided to give you some content by putting a termite colony of the same species near you when you needed it lol.

[@AntsCanada]

This always happens! I feel so lucky!

[@AntsCanada]

PART 2 of this episode is now up! kzbin.info/www/bejne/h3-koJpofMakhNk PART 3: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fmqWpoOnZ6yIrck

[@tanuki_sleep]

hey AntsCanada do you know what song was 22:18 from? I hear it from movie recap videos and I never got to know where it's from.

[@emmalinekim9822]

I am a geotechnical engineer and I work for a deep foundations specialty contractor. I LOVE learning about tropical clay soils! They're still really under researched. If you're curious about learning more, look up tropical residual clay soils. They behave really differently from other soils because of how they are formed chemically. Building foundations on them is very challenging because of their properties. Love your ant channel!! Keep up the great work!

[@ScrolledAgain]

This is really interesting! Thank you for sharing!

[@reanaa]

This was a particular good episode. Love how you don't sugarcoat reality even when it fails sometimes. Great job Mikey.

[@jessep4086]

As I am catching up on the months of videos I missed, I feel like these videos are starting to feel like a TV show. First ten minutes is a recap. Next ten minutes is suspense. Next ten minutes is what should we do? end scene. How many times are we going to get the same recap?

[@betzology6711]

The recap is because he posts weekly and you can forget alot in a week.But if your binge watching it can be a little annoying

[@anonymouse9833]

"as I'm catching up" yeah that's why the recap is there haha so wherever you pick up, you can figure out what's going on!

[@jessep4086]

@@anonymouse9833 thank you for repeating the same thing the guy before you said but differently. It really sticks in the repetition!

[@jessep4086]

@@betzology6711 just reminds me of DragonballZ. Ten minutes recap that wasn't needed. Ten minutes of actual footage. Then seeing the same footage over and over. Don't get me wrong I love seeing everything antscanada does! That's why I can't watch it every episode that gets released that day. It's the same crap I watched last weekend and then the same ten minutes of something I'll watch next weekend.

[@edith3604]

the relation to lighting storms may be linked to how alot of mycelium are water dependent when producing fruiting bodies, many won't fruit until they have a certain amount of rain fall so maybe the termite mushrooms are linked to lighting storms in a similar way. With humid air and certain temperatures from the hot and cold air.

[@antlife4289]

So cool to see them grow this is why I love this channel

[@osmosisjones4912]

It's the elections in the Air

[@kathyl9222]

I like the idea of somehow combining ant keeping and termite keeping with permaculture together.

[@ItsDannyRobbins]

There's a whole movie about this and it does not go well for the ants. It's called....ANTS.

[@bonkious_maximus8297]

It is adorable to see the larger termites grabbing and moving the smaller termites when they get in the way 😂

[@AntsCanada]

So cute right?

[@markryandublado]

It took me 5 days to even start the video because I was hesitant in watching terminates and not an ant related video from you Mikey but now I'm craving for more! The storytelling sold it to mw, the informative details and new knowledge from this colony. I would definitely look at a termite mount with such grace and respect now.

[@bacula8424]

I am soo happy this is documented with such quality

[@farhatamnan3736]

It's so exciting to watch the different experimental setups of the termites adaptwith their surroundings to survive. I was at the edge of my seat as I watched your recent termite videos. Looking forward to their progress and are hoping to see beautiful fungus combs.

[@matthewsykes4814]

My other half absolutely freaks out at bugs and things. Me, I love them. I've a sort of pet spider, common house spider, she's huge and house bugs aren't a problem with her around. She's still fast on her feet and often wanders. I've had her wander up as I'm sat watching vids and use me as just an obstacle, watching her clean herself is fascinating. If she was a tarantula I may be less inclined to let her wander about the house....but she's not and has a healthy diet of other spiders, pillbugs, silverfish etc

[@animeloveer97]

Lmao tarantulas aren't as dangerous either less dangerous sometimes. There's some very calm ones from videos I've seen

[@spencer4771]

This is a phenomenal episode, from every aspect, education, entertainment, and storytelling. Great job!

[@Duesikazergaming]

Great work AC! I’m not a termite expert but I know that having a fungal comb is a good sign because that means the colony is growing. So if you have many colonies at this stage. You have more chances of having a termite colony Here are some names: Terminators 2.0. Fungus farmers. Termie warriors. Fungal dungals. Mitie empire. That it for the names i could think of that’s related to termites

[@sirtopoftheworldegg]

Terminators 2.0 sounds cool

[@Duesikazergaming]

@@sirtopoftheworldegg the OG termite colony antscanada had its name was “the terminators”. So that’s why I had terminators 2.0 in the names

[@tracybowling1156]

This was the best video! I love the long format!!! Thank you for the very detailed update!!! I hope it stays this way! ☺️ #ant&termite❤️4-ever

[@AntsCanada]

Thank you! Ant love forever!

[@tamarrajames3590]

@@AntsCanada Yes, I have missed the long Saturday videos, and am happy to see them returning now the Ant House is done. Loving these termites.🖤🇨🇦

[@huntercool2232]

Hey AC I just wanted to say I really admire you taking advice and even learning from one of your subscribers. It’s not often you have a KZbinr who is humble enough to step back and actually do that. It just goes to show we truly all can learn from each other as equals. You truly are an inspiration bro keep up the great work!

[@press8704]

The baby termites at the beginning were so cute with their darker heads and tiny little bodies!

[@darrelldevo2820]

I've never ran to KZbin so fast !. You are Part of my Saturday routine. I felt so out of place!. Welcome back, now let's watch with my ☕️!

[@thatskykld]

When I was a kid I didn’t really like insects but watching your videos I stoped fearing insects and your videos are so creative I actually got and idea for my ants at my home I learned a lot of things about ants and termites. ants Canada, I really like your videos there very interesting and shocking me every time I watch you videos. Thanks a lot for making me face my fear of insects.

[@SqLionRio]

There is no KZbin channel like yours and I’m so happy that you have kept making videos. Keep up the good work

[@palsprinting]

I've honestly been loving the termite series, honestly there kinda adorable and I hope to see much more of them in the future!!

[@hitavi4965]

11:20 "It was time for us to have some funguys" there are no words

[@AntsCanada]

🤣🤣🤣 You caught it!!!

[@AGirlNamedVan]

I love your passion and excitement finding all these ants

[@W.D.I.G.M.I.Tanner]

What a fantastic episode! I'm so glad to be a part of the start of this journey!!

[@AntsCanada]

Thank you! Ant/termite love forever!

[@amountain7487]

imagine being a termite just farming and vibing and some titan destroy your roof and take half of your farm land away

[@AntsCanada]

🤣🤣🤣 I did feel really bad afterward. I think I got a little too excited in the moment as it was quite a shock, and I took way more than I really needed.

[@munchaking1896]

@@AntsCanada Im surprised you didnt add more of the fungle comb to the new colonies

[@ijlayugan4149]

So happy to see them grow! They're so interesting

[@m.d.2708]

Yours is by far the best KZbin channel I randomly found one day. Started with the early days of the Phoenix Empire a few years back and barely miss an episode. No offense to Paul Rudd, but you the REAL Ant-Man.

[@Ksp_kerbani]

Btw The fibers you saw on the comb where the mycilium or the roots of the fungus

[@LuthienNightwolf]

I would definitely avoid gathering anything from places that other people frequent, as pesticides and other contaminates are likely. Roadsides, other yards, near businesses....better to be safe and assume they are all contaminated than take a chance on it. You have a nice big yard, and you know you don't spray, I'd just stick to that. :) Love the video, always so fascinated with these little creatures.

[@appalachiabrauchfrau]

he can also rinse everything he collects and bake it for half an hour at 250f to disinfect/clean the substrates and detritus, but I'd only do that for leaves and bits collected on his own property, just forgo collection from roadways and other land altogether.

[@LuthienNightwolf]

@@appalachiabrauchfrau Would that not kill off all the spores he's trying to collect though? He's probably safe if its from his own yard, anywhere else would need to be sanitized, defeating the purpose (unless he wants it for decoration only).

[@animeloveer97]

​@@LuthienNightwolf yea it would lmao

[@pinkdaruma8942]

long episodes feel just right. The termites are really interesting, while also having a different "feel" to ants. In videogame terms It feels like ants and termites got very similar play style even tho they use different skills and stats. I have also been reading the comments Cicada fun made in your previous videos too. they're awesome.

[@brandimyhren6317]

I learn so much watching this channel. Keep up the good work. Much appreciated.

[@Sorrowe]

I can’t believe I watched a 30 minute video about stuff I don’t care about, animals I literally hate, and topics I would usually label as “boring” and I actually loved it.

[@Tetopettenson1]

That's what AntsCanada do

[@Tetopettenson1]

He makes things interesting

[@ijlayugan4149]

Nature is so beautiful. The fungus comb are so cool

[@alztherogue4223]

Seeing you nurture and raise a Leaf Cutter colony would be awesome, but I really respect the ethics of not wanting a non-native species possibly get loose and damage the local ecosystem, I love watching the colonies you have grow and thrive it's something I never thought would be interesting, but it's amazing to see the work they do to survive and thrive.

[@Giitzerland]

It's really weird how termites are so calm, and deliberate with their movements, it almost lends a level of intelligence not often seen in the insect world.

[@galaxyguy218]

9 minute intro?!? That’s dedication! Keep up these videos they are amazing keep up the good work!!

[@irvingbrown2389]

How’s it going Mikey? Thanks as always for sharing your life with us! I always look forward to seeing the progress from the week before, will things be successful or will there be setbacks? It’s all park of the incredible process of discovery and learning more about these incredible creatures that we still know very little about!! I’m honored to be a part of your channel!! You have already made important discoveries and are learning every day! It wouldn’t suprise me at all to see this channel be a historically important piece of discoveries not yet known to man. I believe through your experiments with the different termite colonies we will discover and learn things still unknown! I really think that your on the brink of great discoveries!! And I’m m honored to get to be witness. Thanks so much Mikey and the Ants Canada Family!! I truly appreciate everything you all do!! This channel above all has changed my life in ways I could have never imagined! Thanks! Take care, stay safe and healthy!! Also I was thinking, it must be difficult to want a colony like leaf cutters, they are so interesting! Yet I completely understand and agree with your decision to be responsible and only keep species native to your area. Hopefully through examples like yours more people will learn and understand the importance of not keeping invasive species where they could escape and reek havoc on the ecosystem where they don’t belong. So many places are now suffering the consequences of such irresponsible decisions to keep dangerous invasive species. The killer bee epidemic was started from a scientist keeping them in a location they weren’t supposed to be in. There’s countless stories about invasive species that were accidentally released or escaped their enclosure and now are causing major problems for places they weren’t meant to be!! There’s a good reason that certain species only exist in certain places! Nature had a unique balance that’s formed over millions of years. Do what’s right and be responsible and do not keep species that aren’t native to the area that you live. The consequences are often irreversible and usually deadly!! Take care. Look forward to seeing , success!! Fingers crossed 🤞🏼

[@jianpingxie2248]

You are so good at starting termite colonies. I hope to be able to be like you!

[@ThePodVon]

Loved the extra long episode - so much information discovered in such a short time.

[@thespicecorner]

Excited to see where this goes! I’m so proud to be here for the start of this saga ❤

[@kennyferrick1240]

I know there are some species in the arachnid family that do in fact eat and kill mites and help bees (they leave them completely be and just go for the mites) but I'm not certain if they'll help termites with the mite problem. They are called psuedo scorpions or book scorpions(called book scorpions cause they'd eat the pests eating the pages of books) which are VERY TINY, barely any larger than the letters in a book's page and look just like scorpions without a tail and walk backwards. They're actually one of my favorite critters I really want to consider keeping in the future since I know that they will help a colony of of bees and bumbles be free of those nasty parasites. These critters are all over in many different countries and are hitchhikers on many different animals including other bugs which they never will harm. So finding a pseudo scorpion is a definite treat!

[@summerkingmainchannel8237]

This experiment was great I can’t wait to see these termites grow their fungus! 😁

[@bbyjscx]

This is an awesome video, your longer videos are my favourite! Amazing that you found that mound in your garden, you get so lucky with your finds sometimes. :D

[@HardcoreGamerAus]

You first termite colony is what got me hooked on your channel. I’m so happy you have another colony. I have to go back and watch the first episode when you get them.

[@sined911]

This feels like one of your older videos! I like it!

[@GothBoyUK]

It's almost unbelievable! Such an amazing lucky find. 🐜

[@veronicasponchia5838]

He's got acres of land with termites, ants, snakes, lizards etc. Not that hard to believe

[@jjdg88]

I've been with this channel since the beetle Olympics (Go team Hades). My journey with this channel has gone from me just viewing it as something interesting, to having absolute dread every time something bad happens. This channel has had a huge effect on how I now handle the insects that cross my path.

[@yookao]

Love this video, I can't wait to see more of what happens!!!

[@wendycharles9576]

Love this video! CAN YOU DO AN UPDATE ON THE NATIVE VERSUS THE INVANSIVE SPECIES OF THE MUBUAY FARM HOUSE. I've been watching the daily blogs since before you broke ground. I think we would love and update on this. Probably in January though since you're jam packed until then.

[@that_one_filipina_girl_who951]

I like your vids and they're interesting i would definetly recommend this channel to a entomologist or someone who wants to learn more about ants and termites

[@CoralMan24]

I love this channel don't know much about ants or termites except I love watching them and seeing them and this channel really gives you much appreciation for what they do on our planet :)

[@Resomius]

wow, that was actually interesting and very engaging! can´t wait to see more!

[@Redd0w]

I think it’s pretty cool how each of the colonies did different things in their new setups, not one colony is the same as the other. Pretty good how you can experiment on colonies with different intentions/ challenges and see which ones cope the best.

[@y_fam_goeglyd]

That's fascinating. So sad about colony B. I wonder if you can find similar mites to the ones which saved the infested ants in the past so you can save the termite colony. In the meantime, perhaps putting lemon slices inside the gap will reduce the infestation? As for the others, it's an exciting time. We're sure going to have a lot of fun-guys! (I'll get my coat! 😂)

[@Joshuajacobson95]

do i need to list the names of ant colonies that had mites

[@munchaking1896]

@@Joshuajacobson95 Golden Empire?

[@Jayasree0627]

@@Joshuajacobson95 fire nation?

[@bryce9021]

I love watching you you are one of my inspiration and reason why I know what I know about ants now. Thanks you AntsCanada!

[@craigk.235]

This video was incredible, I like how it started! The fungus combs are so cool, I've never seen one before. The setups were really cool, I can't believe what happened to some of the colonies.

[@theantboy7379]

Hey love the videos AC!

[@wise_thaat]

Always a beautiful day, when Ants Sensei drops 🙏 and a mega thank you, I feel guilty as I definitely asked about leafcutter ants on a few videos in the past year. Makes perfect sense why you can't/won't. Amazing substitute, thank you mate 💗

[@preshenkumar5632]

Dang,you've been making videos for so long!So, I'll always enjoy watching .

[@mommydeepriver464]

Hi. This is my first video watched by you. Now I'm down the rabbit hole. Iv watched 4 others today while cleaning my house. Keep up the good work.

[@luisemoralesfalcon4716]

I am glad, I cannot wait to see the immense animal room after all your creatures in the new home.

[@StarWonder]

Lightening is the secret ingredient! XD Love it!

[@RevoMage]

Omg the cliff hangers in this episode are great thank you for making this.

[@Kudar123]

He always says the things will blow me away and they always do I love this!

[@theeisahussain]

I love ants but I didn't think termites were as cool. now I know

[@AntsCanada]

Ikr?! Same! Thank you for watching! Ant/termite love forever!

[@theeisahussain]

Ant/Termite love forever

[@CMZneu]

7:58 You expect us to believe you randomly picked a spot and there happened to be fungus cultivating termites! 🤔

[@AntsCanada]

OMG YES!!! I SWEAR!!! In fact, I wasn't even planning on filming the collection of clay soil but as soon as I turned over the first layer of soil, I couldn't believe how I had struck gold! I mean, it was no wonder it was a bare patch of soil with no grass on it. Beneath it was an active middle-aged termite nest! I filmed the fungus chamber with my cell phone, hence the poor quality of that shot!

[@FakeCletus]

Woww! I'm in amazement of your luck!

[@CMZneu]

@@AntsCanada Hmm ok kinda sus but ok, i guess you either got extremely lucky or i am greatly underestimating the amount of macrotermes in the area.

[@Kairos_Akuma]

@@CMZneu I mean..it's the perfect soil for termites, so naturally there would be a chance of them beeing there. Honestly it's more lucky that they didn't got damaged on accident.

[@veronicasponchia5838]

He's got acres of yard with termite mounds, what's hard to believe?

[@Snyper20]

Subscribed for years, and your b-roll is so good. Have you ever considered adding discreet sound effects for your macro shots?

[@Tetopettenson1]

This man always makes ants doing something interesting

[@flamose1]

The white fuzz is the hyphae of the fungus, essentially the mycelium. Think of it as the root structure

[@LordDragox412]

No dude, that's mold, and scientist don't understand it, and AC will be the first in the world to discover the secret behind it! /s

[@yellowguy1672]

THEY ARE GONNA GROW BIGGER!!!!!!

[@lissakaye610]

Thank you for addressing the ecological and ethical reasons for responsible husbandry.

[@unbible]

My favorite colony is colony C. This channel makes me more and more fascinated in insects than ever. I really love your channel.

[@ThisGuy327]

AntsCanada has been the biggest inspiration to me ever.

[@lucaswallace7476]

Would the mites you applied a year ago to deal with a parasite mite infestation on a crazy yellow ant colony deal with this type of mite infestation?

[@AntsCanada]

I think they might but I don't know where to get hypoaspis mites! I need to find rhino beetles!

[@XocdanDMonke]

Bro, I have been a subscriber for the past 4 years right now and your videos are super interesting and very detailed witch can teach in science. You are so 😎!

[@effoffutube]

fungus yiss hearing you talk about ecologies made me want this more than anything, you have it all

[@TamTroll]

So we've got Ants, We've got Termites, what do you think the odds are of ever successfully keeping Bees or some kind of Wasp? Might not be possible with the enclosed glass-tank setups you usually make due to their need to fly, but could be interesting all the same. Shame there isn't some kind of Aquatic eusociality species to my knowledge.. Then you could have the Fire nation (fire ants) Earth Kingdom (Termites) Air Nomads ) Bees/Wasps) and the Water Tribe (Whatever could theoretically exist here. Some kind of shrimp maybe?)

[@AntsCanada]

Yes, bees are definitely on my bucketlist! I am just in the landscaping and planting stage of the flowering plants around my home first so the bees have flowers to visit! In terms of aquatic eusocial creatures I did hear that there is a eusocial shrimp species. Not sure.

[@TamTroll]

@@AntsCanada Oh yeah, Google has some results for some eusocial shrimp. Doesn't seem like a lot, and could be tricky to get your hands on, but could be an interesting thing to try if nothing else.

[@anthonyleggio4877]

One of the products of lightning is an increase of ozone in the air. I wonder if the fungus increases yield with an increase in ozone. If you attempt this I highly recommend very small amounts as ozone can be a nasty chemical.

[@alonsofragaoficial]

You are fantastic narrating, thank you very much for these videos!❤❤

[@treycopeland1368]

It's always great when you can get termites to work out, great video

[@kazymazy7878]

The termite mushrooms flourishing after lightning could be from an abundance of nitrogen! When lightning strikes it breaks down atmospheric nitrogen that then gets brought down to the ground with the rain. So maybe the mushrooms really like lots of nitrogen?

[@AntsCanada]

Oh, possibly!

[@tamarrajames3590]

Might also have to do with negative ions, also produced by thunderstorms. Perhaps giving the water you add to the set-ups a negative charge might help.🖤🇨🇦