The Best Ant Farm
Pest Strategies
From the classroom to the backyard, adults and kids alike can enjoy the entertaining and enriching experience that ant farms provide. Pest Strategies researched several products on Amazon to help you find the best ant farm for your educational purposes. Discover our top picks below.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071HFGN5P
Uncle Milton Ant Farm
What We Like: Two large bags of sand are included with your purchase, giving you enough material to fill this large farm. If you want to expand your ants’ habitat, you can use the included tube to connect it to another model.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07W3NLRVG
Dan&Darci Ant Farm
What We Like: With a simple setup and small size, this model makes for a great starter farm. A magnifying glass, tunnel starter tool, and coupon for live ants are also included with this ant farm as well as a helpful 16-page illustrated learning guide.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0007CGKN2
Educational Insights Sand Ant Farm
What We Like: With three oversized feeding holes and an included dropper, this ant farm makes it easy for children to care for their ants. The ant farm is also held up by two foot pads to give it stability and prevent it from scratching your tabletop.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08D6MYWSC
NAVAdeal Ant Farm
What We Like: If you want to take education to the next level and study your ant colony on a granular scale, this transparent ant farm is a worthy contender. It includes pass-through tunnels, a nursery area, two air holes, and more, turning a simple farm into a complete kingdom.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078XH7XRF
Educational Insights Gel Ant Farm
What We Like: Using a nutrient-rich gel filler, this ant farm eliminates the need for feeding and watering. It features a sturdy base that anchors it to the table and soft color-changing LEDs that enable easy viewing of the ants. Its top piece also acts as a vent to give the ants oxygen without giving them the opportunity to escape.
Buying Guide
Ant farms come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and styles. Here’s what you should know to find the best ant farm for your needs.
- Fill Material: The fill material is what the ants use to create tunnels and chambers. Natural fill materials include sand, soil, sawdust, vermiculite, and mineral fragments. Gel filler has a translucent blue or green color that illuminates well with LED lights. While gel also acts as a food source, it doesn’t provide adequate nutrition to support an entire colony.
- Lights: Ant farms with LED lights allow for easy viewing of ant activity. Lit ant farms also function as a nightlight or accent light.
- Design: Most ant farms come in one of two styles.
- Sandwich: These ant farms utilize a thin, transparent box and sand or soil filling to house ants. Note, however, that sandwich-style ant farms are only intended to hold worker ants.
- Formicarium: Formicarium-style ant farms are intended for classroom use or scientific research. They use transparent plastic tubing to connect several chambers together. They typically include multiple viewing areas to study the queen ant.
- Containment: Though ant farms are designed to be self-contained, look for one that is built with durable materials and has tightly sealed entryways to keep your ants from escaping.
FAQs
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Are ants included with my ant farm?
Most farms don’t come with ants. However, many companies will include a voucher that entitles you to a separate mail-in ant purchase. The voucher usually covers the cost of the ants but not the cost of shipping. You can always go outside and collect ants, but these ants may be too big or small for your farm.
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What should I feed my ants?
Ants will feast on sugar and honey as well as small bits of dried grains every few days.
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Can I mix different types of ants in my farm?
No. Different species of ants or ants from different colonies are likely to fight and kill each other.
Pest Strategies provides reviews of select products that are top-selling on Amazon and/or popular in consumer searches. Our team evaluates the products based on industry research, consumer reviews, pricing data, and other objective criteria. Unless otherwise noted, these product reviews are intended to help inform buying decisions for non-professionals. Because pest control products can be dangerous to your family if mishandled, we always recommend consulting with an exterminator, even if just to ask for advice on how to apply pest control products yourself.