5 replies to this topic

[AntsNmyPants]

Hey there. I am new to the world of antkeeping (other than the very short stint as a child with a traditional ant farm lol). My son actually showed the first signs of interest and since I love plants he asked me to help build him a terrarium to keep ants in. Since then I've delved into the black hole of learning about ants and antkeeping. I built a terrarium in a small plastic fish tank as he plans on taking it to school at the end of the year as a project. Last week he came across a nest of ants with elates (male and female) just hanging out at the entrance of the nest with some workers. He of course scooped up as many as he could and brought them home. I originally thought they were Argentine ants so I went ahead and put them in the terrarium as is. Since Argentine ants can breed within their own colonies I didn't see an issue with this. We also saved two females and one male elate along with a stray worker in a test tube set up as a back up.
Now that we've had the ants for a few days and I've been able to observe them more closely...I actually think they might be Forelius Mccooki. This is based mainly from the appearance of the elates and the few pictures I can find of them on Google. It's very hard to tell with the worker ants as far as appearance. The behavior hasn't been exact, however they have just undergone a huge and stressful life change so I'm sure they are still out of sorts. My son did find them in the middle of the afternoon on a very hot day (close to 100°F which is hot for this area, we normally top out just above 100 but average high 90s) so that is true to their nature as not much wants to be out during the hottest parts of the day. Either way, I have no idea if they are going to be able to produce a colony now. I did read the care sheet provided in this forum but I could not seem to find a definite answer as to whether they can breed within their own colony like the Argentine ant.
So, this is why I'm here lol. I plan on finding the proper thread to ask specific questions. For now I just wanted to stop by and share the beginning of my adventures in the tiny and amazing world of ants. I haven't figured out how to post pictures here yet. I will learn soon I'm sure, so you all can see our little ants. I also don't have a microscope or anything like that yet, just my fancy phone camera lol. The further we get into the hobby things like a microscope may come.

[ANTdrew]

Welcome! That’s so cool you two can share your interests.

[Manitobant]

Welcome! Arizona is the best state for antkeeping and has the most insect diversity in the country! I would start out with some common species like veromessor pergandei, pheidole, solenopsis xyloni and forelius. If you have any questions about arizona ants be sure to ask me as I'm currently interested in your state's ant fauna as that's where I want to move when I can get out of the house. Good luck anting!

[AntsNmyPants]

Thanks for the welcomes!

It is nice to be able to share interests with my kid. He's 15 now so I'm hanging on as long as I can before he completely has his own life lol.

Manitobant check out my album and see if you can tell me what kind of ants we have lol. I have a thread going in the ant id section as well

Arizona is pretty amazing. Most people just think it's hot, but there's so much more to it!

[Manitobant]

Thanks for the welcomes!
It is nice to be able to share interests with my kid. He's 15 now so I'm hanging on as long as I can before he completely has his own life lol.
Manitobant check out my album and see if you can tell me what kind of ants we have lol. I have a thread going in the ant id section as well
Arizona is pretty amazing. Most people just think it's hot, but there's so much more to it!

your son should also make an account on formiculture. A lot of us are actually teenagers (myself included) and we can answer any questions he has!

[AntsNmyPants]

Manitobant I sent him the link for the forum, I'm hoping he signs up