I'm back, which means update time!
sooo, lots has happened over the time i was away.
most noticeably is my Rhytidoponera Metallica queens.
one queen had 2 pupae and a bunch of larvae! the other has no pupae but a few big larvae. The cocoons are much smaller than the queens, which is strange, especially since semi-claustral queens are often similar sized to their workers. Nanitics?
Here is a photo of the cocoons + queen.
In other news my Austoponera queen is doing well. She doesn't seem to have larvae yet, but she now has a very nice clutch of eggs.
they do look a little yellow, I'm not sure if that means they will be hatching into larvae soon?
regardless it is a step forward, I'm happy to wait for workers.