6 replies to this topic

[fortysixandtwo]

I caught these queens post nuptial flight in June of this year. I caught 6 total new queens over a large area across several hours. I *think* I have 2 different species of Camponotus. I always have a hard time IDing these to species though. These 2 in particular I am interested in identifying as they are 2 of the 3 most successful colonies of the 6 I caught this year. Each colony has 6-12 workers which are visible in the pictures. I caught these late at night, around maybe 9-11pm. There were quite a lot of them so it appeared the nuptial flights had been late in the day or after dark.

 

Camponotus Colony #1

1. Location (on a map) of collection: Nevada City, Nevada County, California, USA
2. Date of collection: June 2019
3. Habitat of collection: Lower Montane forest zone, Sierra Nevada, elevation ~3800 ft
4. Length: Queen ~14mm
5. Color, hue, pattern and texture: Black
6. Distinguishing characteristics: Queens and workers black. More workers than the other colony, but slightly smaller average size
7. Distinguishing behavior: Colony size 10 workers + queen + >5 brood (no fatalities)
8. Nest description: N/A

9. Nuptial flight time and date: June, found after dark

 

My guess: C. modoc

 

Camponotus Colony #5

1. Location of collection: Nevada City, Nevada County, California, USA
2. Date of collection: June 2019
3. Habitat of collection: Lower Montane forest zone, Sierra Nevada, elevation ~3800 ft
4. Length: Queen ~15mm
5. Color, hue, pattern and texture: Mostly black, some faint orangish or brown visible on thorax and abdomen of queen
6. Distinguishing characteristics: Orangish/brownish coloration on queen, workers black. Less workers than the other colony, but they appear slightly larger on average
7. Distinguishing behavior: Colony size 6 workers + queen + <5 brood (no fatalities)
8. Nest description: N/A

9. Nuptial flight time and date: June, found after dark

 

My Guess: C. vicinus

 

Maybe these are the same species I dunno. I uploaded better photos of colony 1. See my reply below for Colony #5 photos.

Attached Images

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Edited by fortysixandtwo, December 2 2019 - 6:39 PM.

[Martialis]

An accurate species ID can’t be made with this resolution

 

Better pictures are here. These are adequate.

Edited by Martialis, December 3 2019 - 6:04 AM.

[fortysixandtwo]

Here are better pictures of Colony #5.

Attached Images

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[Broncos]

Maybe camponotus modoc or penncylvanicus


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[fortysixandtwo]

Maybe camponotus modoc or penncylvanicus


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

In comparison to some C. modoc pictures I have looked at the head doesn't seem large enough on either of these to be modoc. I am not sure if C. penncylvanicus is found in California?

 

Someone on FB made the suggestion these may be Camponotus laevigatus

[NickAnter]

These are both Camponotus vicinus, they are not modoc, not enough hair on the gaster. They are not large enough, and do not have the correct head shape to be laevigatus.

Edited by NickAnter, December 4 2019 - 7:02 AM.

[fortysixandtwo]

These are both Camponotus vicinus, they are not modoc, not enough hair on the gaster. They are not large enough, and do not have the correct head shape to be laevigatus.

 

That is what I suspected but I wasn't sure. Thanks