Ant pupae

The larvae will grown in size, eventually they will be ready to start to take the form of an adult ant. Most species spin a silk cocoon around themselves, this is called the pupa. Inside the pupa a young ant will eclose. Note – some species develop without a silk cocoon.

Eventually pale yellow ants emerge. They quickly darken as their exoskeleton hardens. The first batch of ants ‘nantics‘ or ‘minims’ will be smaller and weaker than an established colonies ants as they have not been fed much.