12 replies to this topic

[NikolaBale]

Hi.

So I'm set on on getting one of these two species as a first exotic.I've heard that in general they are not hard and sensetive.
Basically not a bad choice for a first exotic.

Btw the exact species I'm referring to are O.transversa and D.rugosum.

My question is to anyone that has some experience keeping these gals.Which one would you recommend out of the two?

I live in Montenegro so it dosen't get terribly cold where i live, my room during winter drops to about 21-22 celcius but generally not bellow this.I don't really have a system of heating the entire room so I'm wondering if a heating cable properly placed can do the job? Because the room is quite often in that temperature range during winter.Does that mean the heating cable needs to be active 24/7?

Anyway tips and info from first hand experience would be helpful.Thanks!

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Edited by NikolaBale, October 12 2021 - 8:55 AM.

[Manitobant]

I would personally choose odontoponera due to them having a true queen caste and not gamergates. Hoewever, if the odontoponera is just a founding queen without workers, I would choose the diacamma as odontoponera are apparently quite hard to found, even for a ponerine.

[mmcguffi]

Personally I would choose Diacamma because it does not have a queen -- ponerines with gamergates are super fascinating (to me at least)

[Chickalo]

I personally would pull an AntsCanada and get two Diacamma, but since it's your first or something I'd choose Odontoponera.  This might mean, like, a smoother transition from "normal" ants to the exotic stuff over in the southern hemisphere.  Agreed with what Manito said, make sure the Odontoponera has workers and not founding.

[Manitobant]

Personally I would choose Diacamma because it does not have a queen -- ponerines with gamergates are super fascinating (to me at least)

the problem with gamergates in my opinion is that you can’t easily identify them, which means it is very easy to scam people and you won’t know when your colonies reproductive has died out. The other issue is that gamergates have a much shorter lifespan than queens, usually around 2 years in most genera (an exception is dinoponera, which can live 4 years) and the fact that most diacamma colonies are wild collected means that your gamergate could already be quite old by the time you get her.

[mmcguffi]

 

Personally I would choose Diacamma because it does not have a queen -- ponerines with gamergates are super fascinating (to me at least)

the problem with gamergates in my opinion is that you can’t easily identify them, which means it is very easy to scam people and you won’t know when your colonies reproductive has died out. The other issue is that gamergates have a much shorter lifespan than queens, usually around 2 years in most genera (an exception is dinoponera, which can live 4 years) and the fact that most diacamma colonies are wild collected means that your gamergate could already be quite old by the time you get her.

 

As long as the colony has brood when you buy it though, if there is no gamergate present a new one should develop -- in theory (I have not kept any ponerines) this should allow the colony to last quite a bit longer than a typical colony with a queen. Gamergates are created when the gemmae are allowed to remain on a freshly eclosed adult, which should happen in the absence of the previous gamergate

[Manitobant]

Personally I would choose Diacamma because it does not have a queen -- ponerines with gamergates are super fascinating (to me at least)

the problem with gamergates in my opinion is that you can’t easily identify them, which means it is very easy to scam people and you won’t know when your colonies reproductive has died out. The other issue is that gamergates have a much shorter lifespan than queens, usually around 2 years in most genera (an exception is dinoponera, which can live 4 years) and the fact that most diacamma colonies are wild collected means that your gamergate could already be quite old by the time you get her.

As long as the colony has brood when you buy it though, if there is no gamergate present a new one should develop -- in theory (I have not kept any ponerines) this should allow the colony to last quite a bit longer than a typical colony with a queen. Gamergates are created when the gemmae are allowed to remain on a freshly eclosed adult, which should happen in the absence of the previous gamergate

remember that the gamergate still needs to mate with a foreign male, so you would need to introduce one from a separate colony (diacamma don't inbreed to my knowledge)

[eea]

get 2 diacamma colonies and swap the males

[CheetoLord02]

I've kept O. transversa and they were incredibly boring. That said, I have a pretty universal distaste for Ponerinae (or really any ant that behaves like them) so maybe I'm biased.

[NikolaBale]

I've kept O. transversa and they were incredibly boring. That said, I have a pretty universal distaste for Ponerinae (or really any ant that behaves like them) so maybe I'm biased.

Personal preference aside.Did you have any trouble with them in general?

I absolutely love tropical ponerinae.
From the way they look to the somehwat more individualistic and pack mentality...



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[Manitobant]

I've kept O. transversa and they were incredibly boring. That said, I have a pretty universal distaste for Ponerinae (or really any ant that behaves like them) so maybe I'm biased.

you need to try leptogenys. They act more like a myrmicine than a ponerine.

[NikolaBale]

I've kept O. transversa and they were incredibly boring. That said, I have a pretty universal distaste for Ponerinae (or really any ant that behaves like them) so maybe I'm biased.

you need to try leptogenys. They act more like a myrmicine than a ponerine.

Yes they are super organized and make big colonies.Amazing genus.

I have neve seen the on the market tough.

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[Leo]

Cool, so. Here's my take from someone who lives in an area with both species (and also leptogenys)

 

Odontoponera are not hard to found, and are fairly easy to care for. They also don't sting a lot, so that's good. 

 

Diacamma are also easy to care for, however, the lifespan of a gamergate is not very long, and without a male and fresh brood, it will be extremely difficult for a new gamergate to appear, not to mention that cross breeding with a male is honestly more of a hassle than it is worth.

 

So i would say Odontoponera is probably a better pick.

 

Regarding leptogenys:

 

Are they cool? Hell yeah, some of the most amazing ants ever. However, any colony you have is definetly wild caught, almost without exception, and keeping them alive is very, very, very tough. Many species also specialise on prey items, such as isopods, termites, millipedes e.t.c. Very sensitive ants, more cool to watch than keep, I will try keeping them again though, ignoring my own advice (because i don't need to fork over cash to get some), so if you do see them, buy at your own risk.