26 replies to this topic

[1tsm3jack]

I have decided to start a journal on my 2 Pogonomyrmex queens here, who I recently added to custom "formicariums" (which are really just plastic containers with test tubes in a hole in the side). I collected these queens along with 4 others when I went to Utah over the summer, but only these two girls made it back in the car ride unfortunately, and then I made the mistake of thinking I knew what I was doing, and kept them in test tubes like you would any other ants, not realizing they were semi-claustral. I have fixed my mistake now though. The formicarium will be pictured here and I will try my best to do an update twice a week or so, but they are still technically founding so there may not be much to update about.

These are the formicariums I made.

[1tsm3jack]

I am making 2 posts today because I started the formicariums 2 days ago. Queen #1 which is pictured on the last post was the first queen to go into one of these formicarium, and queen #2 which I haven't taken any pictures of I just made one for her last night. I had hoped that the queens would decide to move dirt into their test tube instead of digging in the "outworld" area, but she has decided to dig her own nest, she currently has either one large chamber or 2 smaller seperate chambers, at least from what I can tell, there could be more that she didn't dig all the way to the bottom though.

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[Ants_Dakota]

Timed updates are fun to do, but there is often not much to discuss. You can check out some of RushmoreAnts or I's past journals to see how quickly scheduled updates fell apart. I would recommend either doing updates based around milestones, such as first larvae, pupae, worker, new nest, etc, or base them around a theme, like discussing seed preference in Pogonomyrmex sp. In fact, your queens digging in the outworld may be the best for them considering this preliminary research.

Edited by Ants_Dakota, October 2 2024 - 4:58 AM.

[1tsm3jack]

Update 10/3/24: Queen #2 has somehow just disappeared, so I have no clue where she went or what happened.\

Queen #1 which is I guess now the only queen has an egg I couldn't get a picture because it is very dark when I try to look in the bottom but I could see her carrying it around.

[kenonical]

Update 10/3/24: Queen #2 has somehow just disappeared, so I have no clue where she went or what happened.\

Queen #1 which is I guess now the only queen has an egg I couldn't get a picture because it is very dark when I try to look in the bottom but I could see her carrying it around. 

do you know what specific species of pogonomyrmex u have?

[1tsm3jack]

 

Update 10/3/24: Queen #2 has somehow just disappeared, so I have no clue where she went or what happened.\

Queen #1 which is I guess now the only queen has an egg I couldn't get a picture because it is very dark when I try to look in the bottom but I could see her carrying it around. 

do you know what specific species of pogonomyrmex u have?

 

I believe that she is either P. Barbatus or P. Occidentalis, I am not exactly sure though. I can post an ID thread when I get home later if she will ever come out of her nest, but I am guessing she won't. On the first post you can see her in the pic on the far left of the picture in the test tube but I don't think that it is close enough to tell what species.

Edited by 1tsm3jack, October 4 2024 - 4:58 AM.

[OwlThatLikesAnts]

 

 

Update 10/3/24: Queen #2 has somehow just disappeared, so I have no clue where she went or what happened.\

Queen #1 which is I guess now the only queen has an egg I couldn't get a picture because it is very dark when I try to look in the bottom but I could see her carrying it around. 

do you know what specific species of pogonomyrmex u have?

 

I believe that she is either P. Barbatus or P. Occidentalis, I am not exactly sure though. I can post an ID thread when I get home later if she will ever come out of her nest, but I am guessing she won't. On the first post you can see her in the pic on the far left of the picture in the test tube but I don't think that it is close enough to tell what species.

 

Is there a lid?

also what dirt are you using? Because if you hydrate it, it can cause the dirt to collapse on her and can kill her. Also was she even meant to dig into the dirt?

[1tsm3jack]

 

 

 

Update 10/3/24: Queen #2 has somehow just disappeared, so I have no clue where she went or what happened.\

Queen #1 which is I guess now the only queen has an egg I couldn't get a picture because it is very dark when I try to look in the bottom but I could see her carrying it around. 

do you know what specific species of pogonomyrmex u have?

 

I believe that she is either P. Barbatus or P. Occidentalis, I am not exactly sure though. I can post an ID thread when I get home later if she will ever come out of her nest, but I am guessing she won't. On the first post you can see her in the pic on the far left of the picture in the test tube but I don't think that it is close enough to tell what species.

 

Is there a lid?

also what dirt are you using? Because if you hydrate it, it can cause the dirt to collapse on her and can kill her. Also was she even meant to dig into the dirt?

 

I gave them deep enough dirt so they could dig if they wanted to, it was a mix of coco substrate used for reptiles, and sand, mixed with a bit of water before I put it in, I haven't hydrated it since and I also carefully removed the dirt little by little when I realized she was gone, and she wasn't there at all. There is a lid on it, yes. Also the soil was very packed down so if they did decide to dig hopefully It wouldn't collapse.

Edited by 1tsm3jack, October 4 2024 - 5:48 AM.

[1tsm3jack]

The other queen that I still have has dug a nest and it is holding up, I will not hydrate it because I don't want it to collapse, and eventually I will move her into a bigger setup when she has a good amount of workers, is there a specific soil you would recommend for when I do that?

[ANTdrew]

Use good ol’ fashioned Virginia clay. Mix it with some sand, and you have the perfect substrate.

[1tsm3jack]

Use good ol’ fashioned Virginia clay. Mix it with some sand, and you have the perfect substrate.

When getting clay about how far should I dig to find it? Also, does it matter if it is mixed with a bit of dirt on accident as well?

[1tsm3jack]

Update 10/4/24: The queen has established a food area and a egg area in her nest . She has 2 eggs now on one half and she dragged in a piece of food, I'm assuming last night, and put it in the other side of the nest. She seems to be well on her way now .

[kenonical]

Update 10/4/24: The queen has established a food area and a egg area in her nest . She has 2 eggs now on one half and she dragged in a piece of food, I'm assuming last night, and put it in the other side of the nest. She seems to be well on her way now .

nice

[kenonical]

but the queens should normally lay in batches, so maybe there are more eggs than you have initially perceived

[1tsm3jack]

but the queens should normally lay in batches, so maybe there are more eggs than you have initially perceived

possibly, there is a part in her container where she has dug the nest all the way to the plastic on the bottom so I can see in, but there is also a part right in the center where there is still sand, so she may have laid more there. I also made the beginner mistake of thinking I knew everything so I didn't do research and therefore didn't realize they were semi claustral, so she did have a lot more eggs for a while but I guess she ate them....

[ANTdrew]

Use good ol’ fashioned Virginia clay. Mix it with some sand, and you have the perfect substrate.

When getting clay about how far should I dig to find it? Also, does it matter if it is mixed with a bit of dirt on accident as well?

If your local soil has clay mixed with loam or sand, then you’re good to go! Bake it a bit at 200 degrees to kill any potential hitchhikers. Also, give thanks in that case that your soil is better than mine, which is pure clay.

[1tsm3jack]

 

 

Use good ol’ fashioned Virginia clay. Mix it with some sand, and you have the perfect substrate.

When getting clay about how far should I dig to find it? Also, does it matter if it is mixed with a bit of dirt on accident as well?

If your local soil has clay mixed with loam or sand, then you’re good to go! Bake it a bit at 200 degrees to kill any potential hitchhikers. Also, give thanks in that case that your soil is better than mine, which is pure clay.

 

Alright thanks so much

[kenonical]

but the queens should normally lay in batches, so maybe there are more eggs than you have initially perceived

possibly, there is a part in her container where she has dug the nest all the way to the plastic on the bottom so I can see in, but there is also a part right in the center where there is still sand, so she may have laid more there. I also made the beginner mistake of thinking I knew everything so I didn't do research and therefore didn't realize they were semi claustral, so she did have a lot more eggs for a while but I guess she ate them....

idk but if she ate them, its possible that there is too much light exposure, or the set up gets shaked a lot. the sp. get scared easily

[kenonical]

Update 10/3/24: Queen #2 has somehow just disappeared, so I have no clue where she went or what happened.\
Queen #1 which is I guess now the only queen has an egg I couldn't get a picture because it is very dark when I try to look in the bottom but I could see her carrying it around. 

do you know what specific species of pogonomyrmex u have?

I believe that she is either P. Barbatus or P. Occidentalis, I am not exactly sure though. I can post an ID thread when I get home later if she will ever come out of her nest, but I am guessing she won't. On the first post you can see her in the pic on the far left of the picture in the test tube but I don't think that it is close enough to tell what species.

from this angle it looks p. occidentalis, but you can verify elsewhere.

[1tsm3jack]

 

 

but the queens should normally lay in batches, so maybe there are more eggs than you have initially perceived

possibly, there is a part in her container where she has dug the nest all the way to the plastic on the bottom so I can see in, but there is also a part right in the center where there is still sand, so she may have laid more there. I also made the beginner mistake of thinking I knew everything so I didn't do research and therefore didn't realize they were semi claustral, so she did have a lot more eggs for a while but I guess she ate them....

idk but if she ate them, its possible that there is too much light exposure, or the set up gets shaked a lot. the sp. get scared easily

 

She had a lot more when she was in the test tube before I put her in this new setup so that's why I think she ate them because when I decided to move her there were no brood anywhere.