62 replies to this topic

[ANTdrew]

Can you try uploading your photos to the FC gallery?

[Temperateants]

https://www.formicul...-crematogaster/

Here's my picture in the gallery. Is this pile of eggs good for a month out of hibernation?

[Temperateants]

https://www.formicul...-crematogaster/

On an offtopic note, I was sorting through old footage of stuff I took, and I found a pic of a dead crematogaster queen. There probably is a nest near my house, even though they are so rare in New England, since I also caught my current crematogaster queen near my house. Hopefully it doesn't get wiped out by Tetramorium, or any other ants.

[ANTdrew]

Crematogaster can easily dominate over Tetramorium in areas full of native plants, especially vines. I've seen them beat back Tetras in my own yard as I've converted it into a native plant jungle.

That egg pile looks pretty good. Just keep feeding them a lot and keep them as warm as you can.

[Temperateants]

Big Update! Most of the eggs grew into larvae and pupae, and I moved the colony. Moving crematogaster was actually one of the least stressful species to move. I simply connected a fresh tube, and ran a heating cable under it. Unlike most species, Crematogaster have an instinct to forage very far. Within hours, workers found the new tube and were enjoying the heat. Later, they started moving the brood. After one night, the queen also moved into the fresh tube.

[ANTdrew]

Wow! If you accomplished moving a Crematogaster colony, that earns you the honor of CrematoMaster status.

[Temperateants]

Even into another test tube?

[RushmoreAnts]

Moving them anywhere is a challenge.

[Canadant]

I started feeding my Cremas Nurbs blood soup/mush and they love it. They appreciate it way more than my other ants. So that's something to try - freeze dried/frozen bloodworms.

I'm hoping to grow my colony this season too. Got some fruit flies on the way!

Good luck.

[ANTdrew]

Awesome! I need to try this.

[Temperateants]

I fed my crematogaster more fruit flies, and some honey, the workers were doing this weird gaster tapping thing when they drank the honey.

[Canadant]

Yeah I wonder what/why they do that with their gators. I wonder if they're waving pheromones in the air. Cool to see.

[ANTdrew]

I find it highly endearing. I also see them do the gaster wagging when they do trophyllaxis.

[RushmoreAnts]

What I find most endearing is how Lasius bounce, jump, and lunge at imaginary targets when they’re exposed to light.

[TheMicroPlanet]

I haven't seen any crematogaster in my immediate area. I hope I find some though; they're really cool. But hey, I just found out there's a colony of Ponera pennsylvanica in my backyard, so who knows what else lurks in that green abyss?

[RushmoreAnts]

Around here, Ponera are actually pretty common, just very cryptic.

[ForestDragon]

Crematogaster interest me so much, at the zoo I volunteer at i saw several Crematogaster workers tending aphids and were not aggravated with the tapinoma tending to the same aphids, I even saw them do the antennae thingy and they didn't react at all, just went back to doing their thing

[Temperateants]

My colony has almost tripled in population, so its up to 16-18 workers, and most of the nanitics have died. There is a large pile of small eggs, so many more are on the way. I've been running low on fruit flies, but these ants appreciate mealworms as well.

[Temperateants]

Not much new has happened, there are over 20 workers now, a decent amount of brood. I haven't fed them that much due to me running out of feeders, but I am expecting a large shipment of Mealworms.

[Temperateants]

Today. Any tips for long term storage? I'm planning on putting some of the new mealworms in my existing farm to add new genes and add to the population. But how do I get the rest to last long for my ants?