At a Glance

• Difficulty: Beginner-friendly
• Founding: Fully claustral
• Diet: Liquid sugars + insect protein
• Temperature: ~78–86°F warm gradient
• Look: Citrus-orange queen, bicolored black/red workers
• Brood: ~7–9 weeks egg to worker
• Activity: Day-active (diurnal)

Founding the Colony

Fully claustral — keep the queen undisturbed in a test tube with a water reservoir until her first workers emerge, typically around seven to nine weeks. No feeding is required during this stage.

Feeding

Kennedyi loves liquid sugars — keep sugar water or honey water available, which the repletes store for the colony. Add protein regularly (fruit flies and other small insects) to support brood development.

Heating & Setup

Warm and dry, around 78–86°F over part of the setup with a cooler side. Because they're day-active, you'll get to watch foraging during daylight hours.

Growth & What to Expect

Steady growth. Colonies can reach the hundreds in the first year and climb past a thousand afterward with good heat and feeding. The citrus-orange queen against bicolored black-and-red workers makes this one of the most visually distinctive — and forgiving — honeypots for newer keepers.

Ready to start a colony?

We raise and ship Citrus Honeypot colonies with a Live Arrival Guarantee.