25 replies to this topic

[gcsnelling]

Dr. Ant, well said and far kinder than I was going to be. And if by some freak chance they are Wasmannia you should kill them not transport them to another locality

Edited by gcsnelling, June 8 2015 - 3:04 PM.

[Vendayn]

I have a smartphone, by this time, the cameras on those should be WAY better than my really old flip phone I had. I get a free smartphone every 2-3  years from the government because of my disability.

 

I already have enough things to worry about buying than a camera that a smartphone should replace and the smartphone I get is for free, and at the end of every month I end up with 20-30 dollars in my bank because rent in southern california is stupid. I get 600 a month, 500+ goes to helping my parents with rent. On top of the water+electric+multiple other bills, dunno how one is expected to pay for anything. I couldn't live on my own in the cheapest shack in California on my disability income. Plus I have to pay for cat food for two cats, so that takes up a lot of my income. I can't get a job, because disability said any job I get they'd cancel my income.

 

And I get more money (including health insurance that pays for my really expensive medication) than I would in a minimum wage job.

 

So if you want me to get a camera, buy one for me. Otherwise, I'll keep making ID posts, journals and what not and taking pictues with my smartphone. Otherwise, I can't buy a camera until we move out of California to somewhere more affordable.

 

heck, in san francisco...you can have two high end computer programming jobs, and still be homeless. Hilarious lol. Not much better in southern california.

Edited by Vendayn, June 8 2015 - 3:06 PM.

[Vendayn]

Anyway, I can't afford a camera. I can't afford a new smartphone and its really lucky I get a free one, and I have to wait to get an upgrade next year from the government. I can't even afford rent on my own. I get VERY little money every month, but its still more than a minimum wage job. And I can't drive either by the way, I black out a lot and I get super shaky in a car amongst many other things...so that complicates things.

Edited by Vendayn, June 8 2015 - 3:08 PM.

[Vendayn]

Disability in Netherlands (I have a friend in the Netherlands) is VASTLY better than the US. He is on disability, and he gets WAY more help than I do. He can get a job, and still get help. Disability in the US, you get on it and there isn't much of a reason to get a job or earn any money (any money I make is taken out of my income, and if I get too much I lose all my benefits).

 

Anyway, I don't mean to come off as harsh or anything...I would LOVE a good camera. But, I can't buy anything on my own. The things I do buy? Go to the cats I have and very limited things.

 

(and to add...)

And I do have a lot of health/disability things, its not just fake for free money. I don't even get that much money for it to be worth it that much. I can't even handle power tools or tools of any kind that are sharp, as I get intense anxiety, super shaky and black out...almost really injured myself once using a saw (and it was just a handsaw). In a car, I black out a lot, which is too dangerous when driving...1 second not paying attention on the road and that is enough for a fatal accident.

Edited by Vendayn, June 8 2015 - 3:13 PM.

[Vendayn]

Anyway, maybe next year when I get an upgraded smartphone (they always give me the 2nd latest generation, not the newest...so my current one is kinda old)...it will have a better camera.

[Vendayn]

So, I asked my friend a bit ago (I don't really know him in person. He is the son of my aunt's friend.) who lives in L.A. We just talk on facebook. He is mostly into spiders and scorpions, not really so much ants.

 

And, like I said on my journal (whatever you read first), I was at least within 4 blocks from Wasmania auropunctata. Well, supposedly. He said he sent in ant samples to...I think some kind of science pest control lab or something? He doesn't type in english well at all, so I couldn't really understand. I don't know where he exactly lives, but it was either right next to where we were...or at least within 4 blocks of where he lives. Which, four blocks is a wide area. But, he said he discovered there was "little biting fire ants" as he called it, which I assume would be Wasmania.

 

Do Solenopsis maniosa have multiple queens? My colony I got, has over 30+ queens (some had wings, but they all took them off when I put them in the ant farm).

 

In any case, I won't be releasing them or letting them have any access of escape. If they are Wasmania, which I assume they are, I'll be putting them in the freezer in the next week or two. Right now they are covered in siran wrap and sides coated with fluon. But, I want to observe them in captivity for a bit as there isn't really too much information on them. I'll probably put in a few Argentine ant workers, so I can see their fighting style and how they interact with Argentine ants. Sort of cruel, but I want to learn.

 

After that, and see what foods they like the best and what their nesting preference is...they'll be going straight to the freezer. I never release non-native ants to an area.

 

And honestly, I MUCH prefer keeping native ants. They are a lot more interesting to me.

 

(update: A crack formed underneath the container, either when I picked it up or it had been there. Since it was at the bottom, no ants escaped. But I put them in the freezer, as I didn't want an invasive ant to get loose.)

Edited by Vendayn, June 8 2015 - 7:29 PM.