How to Care for Crematogaster cerasi | The Common Acrobat Ant Guide
Photo: Jacy Lucier, via Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
With a shiny black, heart-shaped back end it can flip right over its head, Crematogaster cerasi is one of the most common acrobat ants in North America. The workers are small, quick and bold, and a healthy colony grows to thousands.
Watching them tend their brood and rush out at the first sign of danger never gets old. This guide explains Crematogaster cerasi care step by step, from a queen in a test tube to a busy colony.
Crematogaster cerasi is a North American ant, and Best Ants UK does not sell it. North American ants may be illegal or impossible to import into the UK, and we never encourage importing ants. This guide is for keepers where it is native, and for anyone curious.
We have kept ants since 1997, and these are the care rules we use for our own colonies every day.
👉 In a hurry? Download our free Crematogaster cerasi care sheet (PDF) or open the Crematogaster cerasi care sheet page for the key facts at a glance.
Crematogaster cerasi at a Glance
Also known as: the common acrobat ant or black acrobat ant
Origin: North America, from southern Canada across most of the USA into northern Mexico
Sold by Best Ants UK: no, it is a North American species
Keeping level: Intermediate
Queen: about 8mm, glossy black
Workers: 3 to 5mm, dark brown to reddish-brown head and body with a glossy black gaster
Colony: one queen, several thousand workers when mature
Nest temperature: 22 to 26°C in the active season
Nest humidity: 50 to 60%
Workers before moving into a nest: 50+
Winter: a rest of 3 to 4 months at 5 to 10°C, ideally 8 to 10°C, only in a hibernation unit
Escape risk: small, fast climbers, so a PTFE barrier is a must
Meet the Common Acrobat Ant
In the wild, Crematogaster cerasi lives in open woodland, forest edges, grassland and gardens. It nests mostly under bark and in dead wood, in or under fallen logs and stumps, and sometimes in soil or under stones.
When an acrobat ant feels threatened, it lifts its heart-shaped gaster up over its head and gets ready to defend itself with a tiny drop. Nestmates rush in to help. It is harmless to people, but great fun to watch.
The workers farm aphids for their sweet honeydew, often guarding a branch of them against ladybirds, and they collect small dead insects for protein.
Mating flights happen from August to September. A mated queen then seals herself in a small chamber and raises her first workers. In the wild, several young queens sometimes start a colony together, but a mature colony has just one queen.
When Your Ants Arrive
The most important step: leave the parcel completely unopened, exactly as it arrived, at room temperature for 5 hours. The ants must adjust to your home's temperature slowly, because abrupt temperature changes make ants seriously unwell.
After the 5 hours, check the queen is safe and sound. Then leave the colony in its original packaging, with the test tube still in its tin foil and wrapping, somewhere quiet and still, away from daily household activity. Daylight is fine, never direct sunlight.
Give the colony 4 to 5 days of complete rest, with no food. A good supplier feeds the ants before dispatch. Use this time to set up and water the nest. 👉 Our step-by-step ant farm setup guide shows you exactly how.
Still workers or a motionless queen after delivery are almost always delivery stress. Look at the queen's antennae: moving antennae mean she is fine. Almost all recover within 4 to 5 days.
Life in the Test Tube
Acrobat ant workers are tiny, so the colony must grow big in its test tube first. Keep it there until it has at least 50 workers. Moved earlier, the workers abandon the queen in the bigger space, and the colony can fail. The same rule applies to a queen on her own.
A queen on her own still needs a little food. Once a week, give her a tiny drop of protein jelly, about half a grain of rice, on a small flat piece of tin foil inside the tube, next to the dry cotton stopper.
In our experience a fed queen raises her first workers faster, and the queen and colony do far better afterwards. Keep her tube wrapped in its foil and disturb her as little as possible.
With warmth and food the brood takes about 4 to 6 weeks from egg to worker. A well-fed colony can reach hundreds of workers in its first year and thousands in its second.
Moving Into the Ant Farm
When the colony is ready, connect the test tube to the nest with the delivery tin foil still on. Leave it like that for 14 days.
Then slide the foil back about 1mm every day until the tube is fully exposed to daylight. If the ants haven't moved 2 days later, wrap the foil back on, wait another fortnight and repeat. Moving in can take from a couple of days to 6 months.
Once the colony has moved, leave the old test tube connected for at least another 14 days, as ants sometimes leave brood behind.
The red filter and black cover stay on the nest all the time. You can lift the black cover once a day for 2 to 3 minutes, ideally at night, and take the red filter off once a week for 2 to 3 minutes. Take colony photos once a month at most.
The Best Ant Farm for Acrobat Ants
Acrobat ants are tiny, quick and strong-jawed. They need a well-sealed, escape-proof home, and their jaws can chew soft materials such as cotton and soft seals, so check the connections of your setup regularly.
In the wild they live in dead wood, but they don't need wood in captivity. DIY wood, cork or plaster nests are never a good idea.
For tiny species we recommend the A7 Plus ant farm kit only (you will find the link at the end of this guide). Its small nest suits tiny workers, and its pre-installed digital meter shows nest temperature and humidity at a glance.
Place the ant farm in normal daylight, never direct sunlight. Avoid windows, radiators and heaters, vibrating surfaces, speakers and TVs, and rooms with strong smells such as the kitchen.
Temperature and Heating
Keep the nest at 22 to 26°C from spring to autumn. In a warm home, that needs little or no heating, and a warm spot of up to 28°C speeds up the brood.
In a cool home, though, where the room stays around 20°C or below, the brood takes far longer to develop. 👉 There, an Advanced Heating System Small 4W set to 24°C makes a big difference.
The heat mat goes under one quarter of the nest only, on the side opposite the watering area, so the ants can choose their spot. Never heat the whole nest.
In the outworld, aim for 22 to 28°C. By day it should ideally match the nest or be a degree or two cooler. If the nest is heated, warm the outworld too, because a big gap confuses the ants.
Water and Humidity
Keep the nest humidity at 50 to 60%. Use distilled or purified water only. Never use tap water, rainwater or bottled mineral water, even boiled: they cause mould and fungus, which is deadly for ants.
Water the nest with the pipette provided. Pour slowly, a few drops at a time, through the watering hole. Stop as soon as 1 or 2 drops appear inside the nest. That is how you know it is done correctly.
Water about once a week, a little more in summer and a little less in winter. With a meter, simply water when the nest humidity drops below 50%.
Never water the outworld. Keep it dry, at about 50% humidity, like an average UK home. A watering test tube in the outworld gives the workers a safe drink.
Feeding Your Acrobat Ants
Acrobat ants have a sweet tooth, and how fast the colony grows depends mostly on how well it is fed. Feed twice a week, in small amounts, in the outworld only. Remove leftovers after 2 days to stop mould.
🍯 For energy, give our 👉 organic ant honey or 👉 Ant Nectar, which has even more carbohydrates than honey. Both are far better than sugar water or home-made mixes. Offer small drops, as tiny workers can get stuck in a big one.
🥩 For the queen and brood, give 👉 Protein Jelly or 👉 Cricket Mash. Keep protein jelly in the fridge at all times.
Serve food on a small piece of tin foil or in a 👉 small feeding dish, so leftovers are easy to lift out.
In the wild they take small insects such as flies. Live food, such as crickets or locusts, is only for big, established colonies, never small ones.
Always scald it first: wearing gloves, hold it with tweezers in just-boiled water (above 90°C, no longer bubbling) for 10 to 15 seconds, then cut it in half and serve it in the outworld.
Keep Mites Out of Your Colony
Blood-sucking mites are one of the biggest dangers for any ant colony, and they are not rare. They often arrive with bird seed from local shops and off-licences, dried mealworms (useless as ant food), and live food from pet shops or online, where about half carries mites.
Buy ant food only from established, reputable ant-keeping suppliers. At Best Ants UK we clean our foods before dispatch, check every colony twice a month, and check each colony again before it leaves us.
Now and then, look at your queen with a magnifying glass. Tiny white or reddish specks on her joints and legs, together with ants dying fast, are a warning sign of blood-sucking mites.
Stopping Escapes
Acrobat ants are small, quick climbers, so escape prevention is a must. Paint a band of 👉 PTFE Fluon escape barrier around the top inner edge of the outworld lid. The ants slip off it and can't climb out.
PTFE wears off as the ants keep testing the same spots. For up to about 100 ants, reapply it roughly every 4 weeks. Once the colony reaches 300 to 500 ants or more, which happens quickly with this species, reapply it about every 2 weeks.
Never shake the bottle, because it foams. Roll it gently in your hands instead.
Winter Care
Crematogaster cerasi comes from cold northern regions and needs a winter rest every year, for a healthy colony and a laying queen. Give it 3 to 4 months, from about late October or November to February.
In late autumn the colony slows down: the queen stops laying and the larvae pause at a small size. Once the brood has stopped, lower the heat gradually over 1 to 2 weeks to room temperature, about 18 to 20°C, so the workers can fill up on food first.
Then rest it at 5 to 10°C, ideally 8 to 10°C, and never below 4°C, only in a specialised hibernation unit with precise control. Never put ants in a fridge, shed or garage, and never make an abrupt temperature change. We never rest queens in their first year.
During the rest, keep the watering area slightly damp: cold air dries a nest quickly, and drying out is the main cause of winter losses. Give no food, only distilled or purified water.
After the rest, warm the colony up gradually over 5 to 7 days, from 10°C to 18°C and then to 22 to 25°C. Offer organic honey or Ant Nectar straight away to get the queen laying again.
Can I Release My Acrobat Ants?
No. A colony raised indoors won't survive outside, and a North American ant doesn't belong in the wild here. If you ever can't keep your colony any more, 👉 visit our ant adoption page and let us know. We'll see whether we can take it in.
Frequently Asked Questions | FAQ
Is Crematogaster cerasi good for beginners?
It is an intermediate species. The ants are lively and easy to feed, but the workers are tiny, the colony grows fast and a fresh PTFE barrier is a must. For a very first colony, Lasius niger or Messor barbarus is easier.
Can I buy Crematogaster cerasi in the UK?
Best Ants UK does not sell Crematogaster cerasi. It is a North American ant, and it may be illegal or impossible to import into the UK. We never encourage importing ants.
Why is it called an acrobat ant?
When it feels threatened, it flips its heart-shaped back end (the gaster) up over its head, ready to defend itself with a tiny drop. It looks like a little acrobat doing a handstand.
How many workers before moving Crematogaster cerasi into a nest?
At least 50 workers. The workers are only 3 to 5mm long, so a smaller colony is lost in an ant farm and can die. The same rule applies to a queen on her own.
What temperature do Crematogaster cerasi need?
Keep the nest at 22 to 26°C in the active season, with the outworld at 22 to 28°C. In a cool home, an Advanced Heating System set to 24°C under one quarter of the nest keeps the brood growing.
Do Crematogaster cerasi hibernate?
Yes, every year. It needs a winter rest of 3 to 4 months at 5 to 10°C (ideally 8 to 10°C, never below 4°C), only in a specialised hibernation unit with precise control. Cool it down and warm it up gradually. We never rest queens in their first year.
Do acrobat ants sting?
They have a tiny sting and a defensive drop, but they are far too small to harm people. As with every ant, never handle them, and keep the outworld lid closed.
Ready to Start Your Own Ant Colony?
👉 Start with the A7 Plus ant farm kit. Its small nest suits tiny workers, its pre-installed digital meter shows temperature and humidity at a glance, and if you already have your ants, choose its Nest + Outworld option. 👉 Explore all our free ant care sheets.
