5 replies to this topic

[SamKeepsAnts]

One of my queens died and I looked in her test tube and there is silk on the exoskeleton of a cricket (not mold it is in strings) and am wondering if it is brood or if she spun it (I know queens don't spin silk but idk)

 

here is a pichttp://imgur.com/a/F6fGW

 

she was a solenopsis xyloni queen and if its brood tell me so I can give it to my there queen 

[SamKeepsAnts]

And I know i am a beginner and this is probably something obvious that I'm missing

[drtrmiller]

Solenopsis doesn't have the genes to produce silk cocoons, so I don't know what you're looking at; but the only possible explanation I can think of would be a type of mold you haven't seen before, or possibly strands of cotton if they were in a test tube setup?

[Connectimyrmex]

I wouldn't give Solenopsis queens food until workers come.

 

Also, I think that is mold. You should throw that away.

[Kevin]

It is mold. Whenever I have a dead queen from mold, the mold almost looks like the cotton ate it, but it is mold.

[FSTP]

The fruiting bodies of mold can often looks like strands of silk or cotton, even as though its been wrapped or spun.