85 replies to this topic

[kellakk]

No, it didn't have workers.  That's why I'm not quite sure that they're the same.

[Foogoo]

I've long lost track of your journals between your different Myrmecocystus, but would you say you've had the most success with dirt box (or another setup) over the others? Or has it been a fair distribution of deaths across all different setups?

[dspdrew]

Far more success with these dirt boxes than I've ever had with anything else.

[Gregory2455]

Far more success in anything with some substrate really.

[dspdrew]

Update 10-23-2015

 

These are still doing really well. I still have six colonies/queens left. One queen is living in just a test tube, and the other five are in dirt boxes. The black and orange colony, and three of the all-black ones are doing really well.

 

The black and orange colony is up to 13 workers, 6 pupae, and about 30 larvae. The largest of the all-black colonies is up to 20 workers, 10 pupae, and about 70 larvae.

[dspdrew]

Update 1-17-2016

 

The queen in the test tube, and the smallest colony in one of the "dirt boxes" died a while back. Now today I just found the smaller of the remaining four colonies all dead and dried up. I wasn't paying attention to the moisture level in the "dirt boxes", and lost six colonies--this being one of them. It's been so dry lately, that the nest just dried out before I even noticed. The three colonies left all look like they are doing great.

[dspdrew]

Update 2-2-2016

 

I still haven't keyed out the orange and black colony, but they are up to about 40 workers now. The other two colonies are up to about 30 workers each.

 

Here's a video of the largest M. mimicus colony.

 

 

 

Here's a video of the orange and black colony.

 

[klawfran3]

How many repletes do they have now? I think I counted four?

[dspdrew]

These only have one medium-sized replete, and a few small ones total.

[Mdrogun]

It would be cool if the orange ones were a hybrid of some sort. 

[dspdrew]

There's a couple species they could be I think. I see them a lot and really like them; I just never found a queen until now.

[Here for the honeypots]

YAY

Edited by Here for the honeypots, February 9 2016 - 11:31 AM.

[dspdrew]

[klawfran3]

That is undoubtedly one of the most cleanly-excavated dirtbox setups I have ever seen. You can see right through to the other side!

[dspdrew]

Yeah, they dug it out pretty good, but they didn't clean the plastic off very well, so it's not very clear, unfortunately.

[dspdrew]

Update 3-20-2016

 

I just found two more of these queens today in Pinon Hills, CA. I put them both in my "dirt boxes". I have a feeling these ones are the orange and black species, because I saw a lot of them in the area out working on their nests. They both started digging their nests within ten minutes of being put in their containers.

 

Here's one of the new queens digging her founding chamber.

 

[Alexant]

Quick question: What is your favourite Myrmecocyctus species to keep and why?

[LC3]

Haha I like how she flips over time to time

[dspdrew]

Quick question: What is your favourite Myrmecocyctus species to keep and why?

 

I don't know if I really have a favorite yet. I haven't really kept very many species. I think M. mexicanus would maybe be my favorite just because they are the largest.

[Alexant]

Fair enough. Thank you