28 replies to this topic

[TennesseeAnts]

I just got a colony of these elusive little ants, and don't want to fail again. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[Ferox_Formicae]

Springtails. Strumigenys are specially adapted springtail predators. Also, be sure to give them water asap! I made that mistake twice, once with S. membranifera, a colony with three queens, and S. louisianae, one of my favorite SC ants as they're trap-jaw ants, with the exact same jaw structure as Odontomachus or Anochetus or any or the other trap-jaws. They can even catapult backwards with their jaws! Both of these colonies were dead by the morning as they had no water. I miss those ants more than any colonies I've ever had. 

[TennesseeAnts]

Thanks!

[Ferox_Formicae]

Thanks!

No problem! Any idea on what species you have?

[TennesseeAnts]

Not a clue! I will try to ID them tomorrow. If I can raise these properly, I will probably have more than one species.

Also, do these mate in the nest?

[Ferox_Formicae]

Not a clue! I will try to ID them tomorrow. If I can raise these properly, I will probably have more than one species.

Also, do these mate in the nest?

No, they have nuptial flights. I'm so jealous that you found these though. I absolutely adore Strumigenys, but I haven't found any yet this year. Where'd you find these?

[TennesseeAnts]

You under leaf litter in a hollow twig.


Edit: When you try to type fast.

What the sentence is supposed to say: You find them under leaf litter in a hollow twig.

Edited by Ant_Dude2908, May 1 2019 - 3:23 AM.

[TennesseeAnts]

They like honey water.

[Ferox_Formicae]

You under leaf litter in a hollow twig.


Edit: When you try to type fast.

What the sentence is supposed to say: You find them under leaf litter in a hollow twig.

Okay, I'll be on the lookout. I usually find them under rocks.

 

They like honey water.

Hmm, that's interesting.

[TennesseeAnts]

Should I make a journal for them?

[Ferox_Formicae]

Should I make a journal for them?

Heck yeah! If you have pictures, I could maybe try and identify them. I'm going to a park today with my girlfriend, so I'm gonna be on the lookout for some Strumigenys. I know there are also huge carpenter ants there cause I saw them when I was younger, so I'm gonna try and identify them. I'm guessing they're C. castaneus and C. pennsylvanicus.

[TennesseeAnts]

You say you are going to the park, but she doesn't know why you're really going!

Good luck.

[Ferox_Formicae]

You say you are going to the park, but she doesn't know why you're really going!

Good luck.

Well it is a park, a nature park.

[TennesseeAnts]

Oooo. Can I come???

[Carpenter]

If you are having trouble getting springtails in time, try flightless fruit flies until you get a spring tail culture going

[ponerinecat]

They like honey water.

Never heard of that before.

[Ferox_Formicae]

Oooo. Can I come???

Well, I'm already back, and I saw four species of Camponotus, C. pennsylvanicus, C. snellingi, C. nearcticus, and C. chromaiodes. No Strumigenys though. 

[Lisberg]

Biology

Colonies are small (40 to 200 workers), may contain several dealate queens and are seldom seen. In Australia, nests occur in rotten wood, in small rotting seeds or twigs, or directly in the superficial soil layers (Brown 1958a). Foraging is probably hypogaeic (beneath cover), given its frequent occurrence in leaf litter samples, and that its diet is comprised mainly of collembolans. Also occasionally caught in pitfalls. Spring-trap mandibles and an immobilizing sting ensure the successful hunting of small creatures in or beneath the leaf litter. A slow gait and employment of a death-feigning reaction promote the difficulty in detection. Queens forage like workers.

 

 

 

https://www.landcare...igenys-perplexa

 

Sorry, all the replies only loaded after i send my post

Edited by Lisberg, May 1 2019 - 3:00 PM.

[Acutus]

Good luck! So now you all have me curious about these cryptic species! What size exactly are these guys? Are we talking like 1 mm? 

[Acutus]

You under leaf litter in a hollow twig.


Edit: When you try to type fast.

What the sentence is supposed to say: You find them under leaf litter in a hollow twig.

 

So the colony is in a hollow twig?