17 replies to this topic

[Bvrj0969]

I found this lone ant under a stepping stone. No nest, no other ants. I scooped up other ants that wandered into the area and they immediately began fighting.
It's about the width of my pinkie nail (no way to measure.
Shiny black with lighter amber colored gaster that looks possibly transparent at certain angles.

Found in knox co kentucky. I'm located about 20 miles from the Tennessee and Virginia border.

[Bvrj0969]

Also sorry for not using the template. It kept getting deleted after filling it out and then trying to add my pictures.

[Bvrj0969]

[Bvrj0969]

[kellakk]

I'm guessing that's a Brachymyrmex sp. queen.

[Ants4fun]

I belive that is Lasius neoniger.

[Gregory2455]

Lasius neoniger for sure.

[kellakk]

How do you see it from these blurry photos?  I'm just curious.

[LC3]

There seems to be another ant that's not Lasius in one of the pictures. I suggest you take it out.

[Ants4fun]

Yeah some sort of Aphaenogaster sp. Or something.

Edited by Ants4fun, July 7 2015 - 10:03 PM.

[Ants4fun]

How do you see it from these blurry photos?  I'm just curious.

When you live up north in September, those queens are everywhere. Hard not to recognize them up here.

[kellakk]

I see, thanks for responding.  I should probably stick to IDing things that I have experience IDing

[Bvrj0969]

The other one was a strangler from the others I scooped up. Care tips? And how will she fair with no workers?

[Desnob]

From the looks of your ant, she looks like a regular claustral queen, which means she'll dig a small hole and close herself inside until her first workers are born.

 

You'll want to set up a test tube setup, as shown here by AntsCanada (https://www.youtube....h?v=HfzUILyCz8o). The point of a test tube setup is to ensure the queen has a small, comfortable place to rear her young that won't dry up (if the queens don't have some source of moisture they'll fail to start a colony).

 

A fully-claustral queen that just came from a nuptial flight is built to survive without food until her first workers emerge from their pupae.

Edited by Desnob, July 8 2015 - 3:08 AM.

[dspdrew]

I see, thanks for responding.  I should probably stick to IDing things that I have experience IDing

 

That's what I do most of the time.

[Jonathan21700]

In a recent Lasius flight in Canada James Trager ID'd them as Lasius alienus. This is possibly the same species.

[Ants4fun]

I believe Lasius alienus is darker. This is very light. Also I believe L. Alienus has yellow legs.

[James C. Trager]

That's Lasius alienus for sure.

It's way too early in the year and you're too far south for it to be any other species of brown Lasius. 
Watch for L. neoniger late August into October.