A staged approach using ants as test organism in ecotoxicology: Data repository

Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) are eusocial insects and essential for maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Despite their ecological relevance, ants are often neglected in ecotoxicity testing. We developed a staged testing scheme using ants as non-target organisms by exposing workers, larvae, and founding queens of three ant species (<i>Camponotus maculatus</i>, <i>Crematogaster</i> sp., and <i>Lasius niger</i>) to various concentrations of the neonicotinoid imidacloprid. Sub-colonies were orally exposed to honey water - imidacloprid solutions and lethal and sublethal effects were monitored and are presented in detail.This Data Repository provides the raw data used for the anaylses in Pohl et al. 2025 (A staged approach using ants as test organism in ecotoxicology)