Hi all,

I'm looking to mass mark Solenopsis xyloni ants during an experiment. For this experiment, I'm allowing the whole colony to feed on three feeders, and I want to mass mark all the ants that are visiting the feeder and returning to the nest with a unique color corresponding to each of the three feeders. I was reading about various mass marking techniques and it seems two main methods exist so far: Powder paint application (dusting it with a brush) and spray painting using small atomizers or airbrush. But I cannot find a good powder paint that is non-toxic to ants. Also, I do not want to permanently mark the ants. BioQuip had a couple of powder paints used by several researchers, but unfortunately, the company is no longer operational. Any suggestions for good powder paints or paints for atomizers (in the U.S. market)? Also, do any suggestions for specific atomizers or airbrushes that worked for you?

Let me know if you need more information to answer this question.

Thanks in advance!