2 replies to this topic

[jabbado]

I caught another C. consobrinus queen yesterday morning after seeing her scurrying around seemingly looking for a nice home. She still had her wings though but I decided to catch her and see what happens.

I put her in a plaster founding nest I made as a test since I didn't have a spare test tube and she seemed to be happy in there all of yesterday.

This morning I checked on her in the dim light and she still hasn't shed her wings and was trying to escape through a mesh covered stopper I'd made. She had chewed half-way through some thick nylon mesh!

Anyway, is it worth holding on to her to see what happens or is it more likely she's infertile?

[Zeiss]

The only way to tell if a queen has been mated is if you get workers.  Sometimes they never shed their wings which throws a lot of newer people off.  There's a few signs like constantly eating eggs and not organizing them nicely that hint towards being infertile, but it could also just mean she's a bad queen too.

[jabbado]

Yeah I might just keep her and see what happens. I think the nest may have dried out too much overnight as I'm still learning how much moisture is needed. I rehydraded it an hour ago and she's back in the centre cleaning herself.