8 replies to this topic

[noebl1]

#1

 

1. Location of collection:                    Kiddy pool

 

2. Date of collection:                            09-08-2016 ~2-3pm

3. Habitat of collection:                       grass yard surrounded by heavily wooded land

 

4. Length (from head to gaster):         ~8mm  

 

5. Color, hue, pattern and texture:      Light brown, much lighter brown under gaster
 

 

Lasius species?

 

 

 

 

#2

 

1. Location of collection:                  Driveway

 

2. Date of collection:                            09-08-2016 ~5pm

3. Habitat of collection:                       driveway, heavily wooded land

 

4. Length (from head to gaster):         ~9mm  

 

5. Color, hue, pattern and texture:      brown, lighter brown under gaster
 

 

Lasius Neoniger?

 

 

#3

 

1. Location of collection:                    Hammock

 

2. Date of collection:                            09-08-2016 ~2-3pm

3. Habitat of collection:                       grass yard surrounded by heavily wooded land

 

4. Length (from head to gaster):         ~5.75-6mm  

 

5. Color, hue, pattern and texture:      reddish brown

 

Myrmica?

 

 

 

 

#4

 

1. Location of collection:                    Driveway

 

2. Date of collection:                            09-08-2016 ~2-3pm

3. Habitat of collection:                       grass yard surrounded by heavily wooded land

 

4. Length (from head to gaster):         ~3.7mm  

 

5. Color, hue, pattern and texture:      reddish black

 

Myrmecina?

 

 

#5

 

1. Location of collection:                  Driveway

 

2. Date of collection:                            09-08-2016 ~5pm

3. Habitat of collection:                       driveway, heavily wooded land

 

4. Length (from head to gaster):         ~8mm  

 

5. Color, hue, pattern and texture:      Very dark brown, shiny, reddish brown legs

 

Parasitic Lasius?

 

Edited by noebl1, September 8 2016 - 5:11 PM.

[Batspiderfish]

This post makes me happy.

[Batspiderfish]

Queen 1 is probably Lasius nearcticus or Lasius flavus. We need to be able to compare the length of the end-segments of her maxillary palps to tell them apart.

 

Queen 2 looks like Lasius neoniger, but I would get an image of the mandibles and antennal scapes just to be sure.

 

Queen 3 is Myrmica, but these are often ridiculously hard to identify to the species without microscopic examination of a dead specimen.

 

Queen 4 is Myrmecina, from what I can tell. Myrmecina americana is extremely likely; there is a socially parasitic Myrmecina sp. that has a tooth underneath the second petiole.

 

Queen 5 is good ol' Lasius umbratus.

[Canadian anter]

This post makes me happy.

Why?

Also, I think #2 could be pallitarsis or crypticus instead and queen#3 could be Stenamma
I agree on everything else

[Batspiderfish]

 

This post makes me happy.

Why?

Also, I think #2 could be pallitarsis or crypticus instead and queen#3 could be Stenamma
I agree on everything else

 

 

Massachusetts is outside the range of Lasius crypticus. Lasius pallitarsis is not nearly as common as Lasius neoniger on the east coast, but this is why I want to see the mandibles.

 

Stenamma has a 4-segment antennal club, and the top of the head is not as concave as Myrmecina.

 

The post makes me happy because I love seeing the ants people find -- five of them, no less.

 

I'm also working on an improved mating chart, and posts like this are a goldmine.

Edited by Batspiderfish, September 8 2016 - 9:40 PM.

[noebl1]

Thank you very much for all the help and glad it helps with your mating charts  I often wished the ones in here were a bit regionalized.

 

I saw ponera as well, but didn't bothering collecting them as not looking to go thru that complex process  Yesterday was pretty crazy, as most of the insects I saw flying in the air, were some sort of ants for a period of a few hour.  I mentioned this in another post, but my deck to our side door was a graveyard for male alates. 

I also believe I found a 2nd Mymica type as well as smaller, but not sure if a male, will check tonight after work if it's still alive (then will probably release the Myrmica.) 

 

I labeled the test tubes last night, and inadvertently mixed up the couple Lasius queens I took pics of above  I found about 10 total Lasius alates/dealates yesterday, there I think may be at least 3 different types;  a few with a fairly light brown almost yellow under their gaster (queen 1), and a bunch of #2, however one of them looks a bit darker than the others and gaster is a bit larger.  If @batspiderfish doesn't mind, I could post up the 3 different sets with better pics for ID tonight.  

[Batspiderfish]

go for it!  with non-parasitic Lasius, the antennal scapes, mandibles, and maxillary palps (for flavus  group) are the most important features.

[noebl1]

@batspiderfish

 

Here's an attempt at some closeups with a USB microscope... 1.  No where near the resolution it claims to be 2.  They do not like having photos taken of them, especially with the light...  If you can't ID them, that's ok, but definitely appreciate any help you may have:

 

 

Queen #1 (Test tube X)

I believe this to be the L. Flavus or nearcticus or similar:

 

 

 

Queen #2 (Test tube 9)

Not sure if Neoniger?

 

 

Queen #3 (Test tube 4)

Not sure if Neoniger?

 

 

Queen #4 (Test tube 7)

Not sure if Neoniger? So many pics... she didn't really stand still for any so best I could get :-\

 

Queen #5 (Test tube 3)

Not sure if Neoniger?

 

 

 

Thank you for the help... and since I labeled each test tube this time, I can actually go back and take followup photos easier

[Batspiderfish]

Sorry that I wasn't clear; I want to see images from the front of the mandibles of Lasius cf. neoniger so that we can count the teeth and compare their length. There doesn't look to be much for hairs on the antennal scapes, but I wonder if they are not showing up? The images are impressive, even if the image quality leaves something to be desired. We might have more luck with your other camera.

 

The first and third pictures of queen 1 aren't showing up for me.

Edited by Batspiderfish, September 11 2016 - 7:16 PM.