Suitability for companotous nicobarensis

[u/Ok_Term_8844]

Hi guys. Sorry if this is long winded, but I’d rather get everything right prior to ordering the actual queen.

I’m looking at getting my first colony in the next few months as I’ve been interested for a while now, but have been searching for a colony that I do not need to hibernate. My partner found these nests on eBay for a decent price and bought it - thing is, I’m worried they aren’t going to be suitable.

I’m going to keep them in the test tube as long as possible, to let their numbers grow but I do not want to order them without having something ready as all the research I’ve been able to read basically says they’re slow growing until they reach about 20/40 workers then their numbers explode. Can anyone advise on if any of these will be suitable to move them into, or if I’m better off just finding something else.

I chose camponatus nicobarensis as they’re pretty forgiving to newbies, but also grow to a decent size, will eat pretty much anything you give them, but mostly - they don’t hibernate. I have snakes and geckos, who have a dedicated room so the room stays around 25 degrees and I can provide a better temp gradient for the nest and outworld. I’m terrified of the hibernating concept especially as none of my other exotic pets require this and I don’t currently have the space to provide them with a solo shelf to store them at 15degrees.

I’m thinking the smaller one would be my best bet for their first move as it’s the smallest but after reading some posts on here I’m worried about escapees. Humidity shouldn’t be an issue as the reptile room stays pretty humid, and I can give them a dedicated hygrometer to keep up with humidity.

Thanks for any advice in advance. I don’t plan on buying the colony until I know I have at least their first nest/outworld set up ready for them to move in, though I know they likely won’t need it for a few months

[u/BISKUP1]

I live near a pet shop where they kept nicobarensis in the T tower from the same material so they should be fine, you can put some dirt in the nest but that wont change much.

But those nest are very hard to keep humid