11 replies to this topic

[CatsnAnts]

Hello once again!

Ya, I’m breaking up my collective journal. I just don’t like the mess I’ve made with it, and this will be much more organized. I’m not really into bigger species, such as Camponotus, for example. However, I will be making an exception for a single colony of Camponotus subbarbatus that I found in a hollow twig stem while looking for Strumigenys spp.. I couldn’t resist how perfectly they would have fit into a terrarium, so guess what... I made a terrarium! I have a few nice glass bowls that I got recently, and I spent quite a while making this terrarium to how I wanted it. Here’s how it looked before I put the ants/stems/barriers in it (the landscape is elevated towards the back to create a sort of “cliff”):






And here’s the colony (with a heading so I can keep my OCD in check lol):
Camponotus subbarbatus (1 queen)
This colony has only one queen, and I found a small satellite nest which I brood boosted them with. It was kind of hilarious to see them shoving all of the extra brood into their tiny stem. The queen couldn’t even fit inside anymore ! Lucky for them, I gave them four extra stems to live in. Here they are now (they live in the two stems atop the “cliff”):





And I also want to mention that I now have a room specifically dedicated to my ants! At first, I thought my parents were trying to get rid of them by making me move them into a more “hidden” room, but now that I’m here, it’s actually pretty cozy and nice to have a space all to my self.

ALSO ALSO, I need help on camera lenses. Dry_Twig has given me a few good suggestions, but here is the link if anyone else has any input on this sort of thing (I am dumb when it comes to cameras): https://www.formicul...-about-cameras/

Edited by CatsnAnts, July 16 2020 - 10:10 AM.

[RushmoreAnts]

I'm really non-biased about an ant's size. I love large ants just as much as small ones, and everything in between. But what really pisses me off is when people decide that they don't like a species just because it's small.

Edited by AntsDakota, July 16 2020 - 10:14 AM.

[KitsAntVa]

Great I would love to see more of the subbs they are my favorite ants in my opinion. Also how did you find these? What would you look for?

[CatsnAnts]

Great I would love to see more of the subbs they are my favorite ants in my opinion. Also how did you find these? What would you look for?

If you would like, I can take some pictures of where I found them - I’ll be heading out later today! Lots of people tend to actually look in a forest, but I have found that looking right at the edge of a forest can yield lots of finds, especially with this species. By stems, there is a specific weed that grows near here that produces large, hollowed out stems after they die that this species appears to like.

Edited by CatsnAnts, July 16 2020 - 11:15 AM.

[KitsAntVa]

Nice I would love to see pictures I hope mine make it, but I have hope even if they only have one queen.

[ANTdrew]

Send me a picture of the weed you mention, and I can try to ID it. It sounds like pokeweed to me.

[CatsnAnts]

Here ya go:

My anting experience over the past few days has mainly been centered on the other side of our lake (with our house on the side I took the picture from):



As you can see, our dam is really steep, and it turns sharply from a nice field into a thick forest:



Here is the spot where I found all of my Strumigenys colonies as well as my C. subbarbatus colony:




There are lots of walnuts and hollowed-our twigs under the leaf litter:



And here’s one of the dried out stems that I found this colony in (actually two):




And here’s the patch of weeds along the edge of the forest that I have found all of the colonies in/around:

[RushmoreAnts]

Wow, you're so lucky to live so close to phenomenal anting territory!

[TennesseeAnts]

Wow, you're so lucky to live so close to phenomenal anting territory!

Now, imagine that, but in TN. That's what my area looks like for miles around.

[RushmoreAnts]

 

Wow, you're so lucky to live so close to phenomenal anting territory!

Now, imagine that, but in TN. That's what my area looks like for miles around.

 

We do have lots of those areas here, they're just at least 5 miles away. I don't go any further than 20 miles, though.

[ANTdrew]

That is Impatiens capensis, aka jewelweed, my friend! It is a native Impatiens that will cure poison ivy if the plant juices are rubbed on the rash. The dangling orange blossoms are much loved by bumblebees. It is more of a wetland plant, which makes sense why it would be near your pond. 

[CatsnAnts]

That is Impatiens capensis, aka jewelweed, my friend! It is a native Impatiens that will cure poison ivy if the plant juices are rubbed on the rash. The dangling orange blossoms are much loved by bumblebees. It is more of a wetland plant, which makes sense why it would be near your pond.

I had a feeling that’s what it was! We actually used to pick a bunch of it and infuse it into an oil. I guess I can’t recognize them without their signature blooms haha. Good to know