69 replies to this topic

[dspdrew]

Update 6-4-2015

 

The older colony finally has three new eggs. It's interesting that this happened a couple days after boosting them, and the same thing happened to my C. sansabeanus colony as well.

[dspdrew]

Update 7-15-2015

 

Most of the queens I found at the end of May got their first workers a couple days ago.

 

Here's one of the all-black ones and her first worker.

 

 

[dspdrew]

Update 1-17-2016
 
Most of the new queens I found in 2015 turned out to be duds. I have two red-and-black colonies with a few workers, but all the all-black colonies are still either just queens, or a queen and one worker. My original red-and-black colony is still alive, but not doing much. Right now they have six workers, one being an all-black C. vicinus major, and another a C. semitestaceus minor.
 
A couple days ago I put them all into hibernation in my new "hibernation cabinet".
 

[dspdrew]

Update 4-4-2016

 

I took these out of hibernation last week. It doesn't look like any of the colonies lost any workers.

[dspdrew]

Update 5-10-2016

 

One of the colonies I have in the little test tube containers just laid a small pile of eggs today.

[dspdrew]

Update 5-17-2016

 

I just found two more of these queens in Angelus Oaks, CA, on 5-12-2016. I found one in Mt. Baldy two weeks ago, but it's looking like a dud already. Nothing else has changed with the older queens/colonies.

[dspdrew]

Update 8-5-2016

 

I found a few more of these queens a while back, and now have a few new colonies that are pretty good so far. I don't have anymore of the all-black variety.

[sgheaton]

Are your pictures just very clear or are those ants on the larger side??

[dspdrew]

These are a large Camponotus.

[dspdrew]

Update 11-20-2016

 

At this point, the only colonies that seem to be doing okay are three of the new ones I found this year. The worker count of those three colonies is six, seven, and eight. I just put these all in hibernation.

[CrazyLegs]

Simply amazing

[dspdrew]

Update 3-16-2017

 

I just took these colonies out of hibernation today. One of them lost quite a few workers. The other two are okay. The worker count now is zero, zero, seven, and nine.

 

I also just found two more of these queens on 3-10-2017 and 3-11-2017, up at Chaney Trail in Altadena, CA. They both look a little smaller than usual.

[nurbs]

Update 3-16-2017

 

I just took these colonies out of hibernation today. One of them lost quite a few workers. The other two are okay. The worker count now is zero, zero, seven, and nine.

 

I also just found two more of these queens on 3-10-2017 and 3-11-2017, up at Chaney Trail in Altadena, CA. They both look a little smaller than usual.

 

Noticed the same thing. The C. vicinus I found at Chaney (both red/black and all black variety) are a few mm smaller than the ones I currently have. At first I wasn't even sure if the all black were C. vicinus given how shiny they were.

[dspdrew]

Update 4-28-2017

I just found a bunch more of these queens April 21 and 22 in Mount Baldy.

[dspdrew]

Update 1-13-2018

All of these queens started nice little colonies at first, but then slowly died off as usual. I even tried moving them out of the warm room they were in, and into the air conditioned area of my apartment, but it didn't seem to help. It's weird how well some of the colonies I have sold to people have done; I just can't seem to get the mountain Camponotus to do well myself. I now only have a couple of these left. I just now put them into hibernation for the winter.

[nurbs]

Update 1-13-2018

All of these queens started nice little colonies at first, but then slowly died off as usual. I even tried moving them out of the warm room they were in, and into the air conditioned area of my apartment, but it didn't seem to help. It's weird how well some of the colonies I have sold to people have done; I just can't seem to get the mountain Camponotus to do well myself. I now only have a couple of these left. I just now put them into hibernation for the winter.

 

They need some Nurbs lovin!

[YsTheAnt]

What's the best that someone you sold to has done with these?

[dspdrew]

Update 6-8-2018

I just took these out of hibernation about a week ago. All the colonies are still very small.

 

I also just found a few more all-black C. vicinus queens in Angelus Oaks, CA again on 5-28-2018, during a slight heatwave.

[Rstheant]

You might want to put oak bark

[dspdrew]

Update 12-3-2018

These are all dead now.