Species comparison

Messor barbarus vs Messor capitatus

Side by side: difficulty, size, growth, climate, hibernation and nuptial flights, from the data and sources of each species sheet.

Head to head

Messor barbarus and Messor capitatus compared fact by fact
Messor barbarusMessor capitatus
Keeping
Difficulty
Easier1/7

Beginner

2/7

Beginner

Escape risk
Low
Low
Diet
SugarInsectsSeeds
SeedsInsectsSugar
Best nests
Ytong nest · Acrylic nest · Naturalistic setup
Ytong nest · Acrylic nest · Naturalistic setup
Colony
Growth
FasterVery fast
Fast
Colony size
Reaches 1,000 workers
Reaches 5,000 workers
Workers
3–8 mm

majors up to 14 mm

4–8 mm

majors up to 13 mm

Queen
14–17 mm
13–15 mm
Colony founding
Fully claustral

One queen

Fully claustral

One queen

Defense
Bites
Bites
Climate
Nest temperature
21–26 °C
22–28 °C
Nest humidity
50–60 %

Seed granaries: 10–40 %

50–60 %

Seed granaries: 30–50 %

Hibernation
12–16 °C

Oct – Mar

10–15 °C

Dec – Feb

Nuptial flights
Sep – Nov

After rain

Sep – Nov

After rain

Native range
Europe, North Africa
Europe, North Africa

Size to scale

  • Messor barbarus

    Workers · 3–8 mm
    Majors · ≤ 14 mm
    Queen · 14–17 mm

  • Messor capitatus

    Workers · 4–8 mm
    Majors · ≤ 13 mm
    Queen · 13–15 mm
10 mm: both species are drawn at the same scale

Their year side by side

  • Messor barbarus : Hibernation: Oct – Mar, Nuptial flights: Sep – Nov

  • Messor capitatus : Hibernation: Dec – Feb, Nuptial flights: Sep – Nov

Months for temperate Europe and the Mediterranean. The weather decides the exact days, so flights can come earlier or later where you live.

How to tell them apart

Messor barbarus

Black workers in many sizes, from small minors to majors with an oversized red head that cracks seeds. They walk slowly and clumsily, and they are poor climbers.

  • Tip Give the nest a humidity gradient: dry granaries keep the seeds from sprouting or going moldy, while the brood needs the humid chambers.
  • Tip Seeds alone can feed the whole colony, but a few insects once the colony has grown a bit speed up the growth of the brood.

Messor capitatus

Glossy, uniformly black workers of many sizes, with big-headed majors that walk slowly and clumsily. Unlike Messor barbarus, the majors have a black head instead of a red one and an angular rear of the thorax instead of a rounded one.

  • Tip Give the first workers small seeds such as dandelion or grass seeds, which even the smallest of them can crush on their own. The queen herself can help crack the harder seeds that the first workers cannot open yet.
  • Tip They share no liquid food mouth to mouth, so keep water and food available at all times. Cover the water spot with cotton or small stones, because the clumsy workers can drown in open water.

More comparisons

Compare
with
Messor barbarus care guide Messor capitatus sheet

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