7 replies to this topic

[spiffer]

Hi guys, caught what I thought is a queen and set it up in a test tube, however i'm having problems IDing it. Starting to wonder if i've collected a queen or if it's some other insect like a wasp. 
 
Body:
1. Caught when it flew into my house. I live in the west of Singapore on the 17th floor of a flat.

2. Collected on 21 February 2015
3. I'm not sure where it's usual habitat is but there are parks and a lake nearby and i'd assume that since it flew into my flat, it's a species that makes it's habitats in human homes.
4. Length is about 11mm. 
5. It seems to be all black. Wings are also dark translucent (slightly brown under white light)
6. Distinguishing characteristics: it's mandibles appear to be thin and long (like an odontomachus) and she likes to keep it an 180degree angle to her head. I think she has one sharp petiole node but it is very small and quite hard to see under her wings which are kept folded neatly above her body.

7. After the first night, she laid what seems to be two eggs, each about 1mm in size and white in colour, however after the third night, one of the eggs disappeared, she may have eaten it.
8. I havent got a description of what the nest may look like as it flew into my flat.

 

Any help would be appreciated, I tried doing a search on south-east asian ant species, but nothing's come up, It resembles the wasp species sphex pensylvanicus very much although i note that the wasp grows much bigger and its antennaes do not rest at right angles like an ants. 
 

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Edited by spiffer, February 24 2015 - 11:37 AM.

[Mercutia]

It's an Odontomachus queen (trap-jaw ant). They are semi-claustral so you are going to have to feed her during the founding process. I'm unfamiliar with the exact species of Odontomachus because I am not familiar with the ants in your area.

[BugFinder]

That's a hell of a jaw on that ant!  Great catch Spiffer!

[Etherwulf]

That is Odontomachus simillimus.

They generally like nesting at the bases of tree. rotting logs, or in leaf litters and are unlikely to nest in human homes. Their nests are normally constructed out of dirt. Your point about it looking like a wasp is indeed valid because from an evolutionary standpoint, ants in the Ponerinae subfamily are closely related to wasps. This is most apparent in the male alates which closely resemble wasps and look nothing like their female counterparts. Refer to (http://termitesandan...ontomachus.html) for pictures of male alates and further info. Another thing to take note of is their well-developed sting, which is not unlike a wasp.

I'm currently keeping two of them so you may refer to my journal for further information regarding my set-ups. Note that this species cannot be sealed into a test-tube and forgotten. They require constant feeding of small insects in order to lay eggs and larval growth. Fed well, she will likely soon have a large clutch of eggs.

Also keep in mind that they need soil because of their 'slippery feet'. They are not able to grip to smooth surfaces and require soil. More importantly, their larvae need soil to assist them in forming cocoons. Failing the above conditions, your queen (which may or may not be fertile) is unlikely to bear you a successful colony. For best results, add her to a test tube lined with soil and covered with aluminium foil. Then feed her daily with insects and honey. Remove all uneaten food after half a day to prevent mold accumulation.

If you have further queries, please do ask them here to benefit everyone. Also, welcome to the forum! It's good to see ant keepers from SEA joining!

Edited by Etherwulf, February 25 2015 - 10:00 PM.

[spiffer]

Thanks everyone for the warm welcome and advice, glad to be a part of the community!

 

I kinda suspected that she might have been semi-claustral when I saw one of the eggs disappear. (Thought she might have ate them). So having taken Etherwulf's advice, i moved her to a tank full of soil. And put out some honey and insects for her. (Pictures enclosed)

She's taken to hiding under a little ditch that she dug for herself under the dried leaf.

 

Since I caught her though I havent seen her eat anything at all, (i've tried cooked egg, honey, dead ants and another small millipede looking like creature that were abundant under my flat (pics enclosed)) so i'm getting a little worried. Etherwulf, in your experience with these guys, what do you use for protein besides insects?

 

On a sidenote, mercutia, I enjoyed your youtube review of Antcananda's Vertical Omni Nest, it's got me yearning for one myself.

[Etherwulf]

Spiffer, consider starting an ant journal for your new queen because this is a ID thread which has already been solved. For the benefit of other people, please mark this thread "Solved" for easy reference.

 

Secondly, a queen is not semi-claustral just based on the fact that she cannibalised her egg(s). A semi-claustral is queen is semi-claustral because she forages for food on her own until her first workers takes over. A claustral queen on the other hand seals herself into a chamber and relies on her fat reserves to raise her first batch of workers. This has already been mentioned before under the ant-keeping guide in the ant-keeping subforum. Please do read up on your own because most of the necessary information is already on this forum itself.

 

Thirdly, my advice was to put her in a test-tube lined with soil and wrapped in aluminium foil. This is because they need soil and are very sensitive to light and vibrations in the air. The test-tube is used for easy monitoring. Right now, it is unlikely that she will move into the test-tube because it is does not provide adequate shade which explains why she's huddled under the leaf. 

 

Finally, she is not eating because she had not laid eggs. Since you've been offering mostly protein food, she is unlikely to feed because she does not require so much protein yet. Furthermore, she had clearly not settled into her new environment which is constantly in the light.

Edited by Etherwulf, February 26 2015 - 12:07 AM.

[spiffer]

Ah I see, thanks will move her to somewhere less bright and monitor her. 

Sorry but I took her out of the testtube because I was looking at your journal and thought she might benefit from something like your heart shaped container with a little shelter and more place to manuever around. 

[Etherwulf]

If you decide not to use a test-tube, what I did with the heart-shaped container was place a layer of PVA sponge followed by a layer of mesh and finally, a layer of soil. After I saw that she had eggs under the piece of bark I gave her, I moistened one corner to encourage her to construct her mound next to the side of the container. Perhaps you could something similar.

 

What you could do right now is move the leaf closer to the side of the tank so that you can see when she has eggs. 

 

Go ahead and experiment though. There are many ways to raise colonies successfully and everyone has their own favourite method  .

 

Good luck!