AntsTx’s Perilous Pogonomyrmex occidentalis Journal
Howdy y’all! 
I caught 47 Western Harvester Ant (Pogonomyrmex occidentalis) queens back in late June and now that they have workers I am going to make a journal on the 2 surviving colonies. (The others died of dehydration and lack of seeds because I didn’t know they needed seeds during the founding stage and I didn’t check their water source 
) I am going to edit this first post on my findings on their diet, growth speed, ideal temperature, nuptial flight time, their castes, their temper, how easy it is to contain them, their founding stage, their development cycle, their lifespan, lighting them, and how often I feed them and what I feed them at different ages. I will post the last 3 months below this first post, and then post weekly updates.
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Pogonomyrmex occidentalis Info
Last Updated: 9/22/24
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About Pogonomyrmex occidentalis
Pogonomyrmex occidentalis, commonly referred to as the Harvester Ant or Western Harvester Ant, is a very interesting species of ant that collects seeds as their primary food source instead of insects or other sources of protein. (They still collect insects but not as often as seeds) They break open these seeds with their powerful jaws and turn the inside of the seed into a food called ant bread. When threatened or hunting they use their stinger to immobilize their prey and then attack them with their jaws.
These ants also play major roles in the environment. For example, they bring up nutrient-dense soil to the surface when digging their nests that plants love. They can also disperse seeds, thus helping the spread of native species of plants.
Castes of Pogonomyrmex occidentalis
Queen:
The queen is usually 10-12mm long and has a yellow/brown to red/brown body. You can identify her from the workers by her larger thorax and her wing scars. If she just landed from her nuptial flight, you can tell if she is a queen by her frantic behavior.
Male:
The males are usually 8-10mm long and have a dark/brown body with a yellow/orangeish brown abdomen. You can identify them by their smaller head and they usually will have their wings on. If you see any of these roaming around or flying around, there is probably a nuptial flight happening.
Workers:
The workers are usually 5-8mm long and have a yellow/brown to red/brown body. You can identify them by their smaller appearance and if they seem to be foraging or constructing their mound with other workers.
Temper of Pogonomyrmex occidentalis
Whenever the colony of Pogonomyrmex occidentalis is young, they are primarily nocturnal and are overly careful at first. Then they become the most confident aggressive ants when their colony grows in numbers. They will start to accept unfamiliar foods and get less and less cautious as they get stronger, which makes feeding time a breeze.
How Easy it is to Contain Pogonomyrmex occidentalis
Pogonomyrmex occidentalis are surprisingly easy to contain because of the fact that they can’t climb glass or plastic, which makes fluon useless. Although they can’t climb glass or plastic, if there's a corner with something like sand attached to the wall, they can climb up that.
Pogonomyrmex occidentalis’s Founding Stage
Pogonomyrmex occidentalis are known to be a semi-claustral ant, which means that they need to eat during the founding stage unlike claustral ants which use their wing muscles to feed themselves and their brood. You will need to feed them some seeds and some protein during the founding stage. The best way to make a home for them is not a test tube, except for if you have a bunch of queens, but a small plastic container about 8” high and filled halfway with sand found near a nest of Pogonomyrmex occidentalis. You will need to mix this sand with some water to make a clay like mixture before pouring it in. Once this is done, you can put a upside-down water bottle cap with water with toothpicks in it so the queen doesn’t drown. Make sure to have a toothpick leading up to the bottle cap so the queen or workers can get onto it to drink water. You would then place some seeds in there and a small source of protein for them. Once a week, refill the water bottle cap and spray a tiny bit of water along the inches, about 2” deep into the sand. If you want the queen to dig up against the plastic or glass container that you’re using, you can wrap paper or foil around the base. The queen will then dig her founding chamber, forage, and have her workers. This is when you need to start feeding them a small source of protein and some seeds every 2 days.
Lifespan of Pogonomyrmex occidentalis
Queen:
In the wild a queen can last up to 40 years, but in captivity it is predicted that they will last for 10 years. This can depend on the amount of males that the queen mated with during her nuptial flight.
Males:
Males will usually be made in May and wait in the nest until it is time for their nuptial flight. When this comes along the male will fly off, mate with a queen, then drop to the ground and slowly die, most of the time becoming food for another ant colony or insect.
Workers:
The workers usually will live up to 4-6 months, while taking on different duties as they age.
Colony Timeline of Pogonomyrmex occidentalis
First Day:
Congratulations! You caught your Pogonomyrmex occidentalis queen! You will put her in a test tube with some seeds for her to munch on.
First Month:
By now you may have your first workers or have some darkening pupae. Once the first workers arrive, the nanitics, you should probably feed them some more seeds and maybe a mealworm.
6 Months:
Around now you should have 200-250 workers and have them in a nest that they can fit in and don’t have too much extra space.
1 Year:
Congratulations! It’s your antiversary 
! You probably should have around 750-1000 workers now.
5 Years:
Your colony should be at its worker cap (around 20,000 workers) and you should have started to see alates during their nuptial flight season!
Pogonomyrmex occidentalis’s Diet
Currently I have found that they like and dislike these types of foods:
What they like:
Seeds:
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Dandelion seeds
Protein:
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Small mealworms
What they don’t like:
Seeds:
Nothing so far
Protein:
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Cricket legs
The Growth Speed of Pogonomyrmex occidentalis
Founding Growth Speed:
In my experience with these colonies, Pogonomyrmex occidentalis usually take around 5-7 weeks to get their first workers, usually having 3-6 workers in their first batch. (Mine were late because I didn’t know they needed seeds during the founding stage)
Development Cycle of Pogonomyrmex occidentalis
Egg:
The egg generally takes 10-12 days to hatch into a larva
Larvae:
The larvae usually takes 10-14 days to eclose into a pupa
Pupae:
The pupae generally takes 9-12 days to eclose into a worker
In conclusion, this process takes 29-38 days for an egg to go to a worker.
Pogonomyrmex occidentalis’s Ideal Temperature
Pogonomyrmex occidentalis are usually found in an arid/desert climate where it is usually hot, so they like a constant 85-90 degrees fahrenheit where their nest is. This can be implemented by using a heat cable, heat matt, heat lamp, or putting them in a hot room. Since they live in an arid/desert climate they will not need diapause (hibernation) so they will keep growing year round and you never should let them drop below 80 degrees Fahrenheit if you want them to grow.
When Pogonomyrmex occidentalis Have Their Nuptial Flights
I caught the 47 queens in late June on a morning (6:30am) the day after a rainstorm at about 80 degrees fahrenheit. I’ve also heard they have their nuptial flights 3-4 hours before a rainstorm. You can also try catching them when they are foraging around for food after they dug their founding chamber, you can catch them digging their founding chamber, or you can simply dig up their founding chamber with a shovel.
How Often I Feed and What I Feed Pogonomyrmex occidentalis
Founding Feeding
I usually feed my Pogonomyrmex occidentalis a small mealworm and around 10 dandelion seeds every 2 days.
Lighting Pogonomyrmex occidentalis
Lighting Pogonomyrmex occidentalis is definitely not required but you can use it as a source of heat and to simulate day and night. This is better to be used in a terrarium or if you have multiple colonies that you want to heat.
If any of this information is wrong, please let me know!
Edited by AntsTx, October 7 2024 - 3:11 PM.
