12 replies to this topic

[dspdrew]

1. Location of collection:  Ice House Canyon, Mt. Baldy, California.
2. Date of collection:  8-27-2014.
3. Habitat of collection:  Pine/Oak Forest.
4. Length (from head to gaster):  5 mm.
5. Color, hue, pattern and texture:  All yellowish-brown, with a redish-brown thorax.
6. Distinguishing characteristics:  Parasitic look with small gaster.
7. Anything else distinctive: 
8. Nest description:

 

 

 

 

 

[dspdrew]

I think this may be a parasitic Lasius. I have little to no experience with Lasius or parasitic ants, but I found two of these, so I'll give them a try if that's what they are.

[AntsAreUs]

Maybe L. claviger, which should be an easy one to keep. If  you can you should give them some pupa of some related ant species,  I gave mine Brachymyrmex pupa and they accepted it.

[dspdrew]

Your Lasius except Brachymyrmex workers? Mixing genera is said to not be possible other than Polyergus and Formica. I have heard people claim they have done it with some harvester ants, but I've never heard of mixing Lasius and Brachymyrmex. Are you sure about that? Also, we don't appear to have L. claviger in California.

 

Edit: Umm, I think I might be wrong here. I have always been told that Polyergus and Formica were the only two different genera that could communicate with each other, but I have just been told there are a bunch, so I don't know anymore.

Edited by dspdrew, September 13 2014 - 9:33 AM.

[AntsAreUs]

Your Lasius except Brachymyrmex workers? Mixing genera is said to not be possible other than Polyergus and Formica. I have heard people claim

they have done it with some harvester ants, but I've never heard of mixing Lasius and Brachymyrmex. Are you sure about that? Also, we don't appear to have L. claviger in California.

It really did work for me, although the B. was really figity. L. parisites are pretty hard to keep though.

[Gregory2455]

I think if you give a parasitic species larvae and pupae, no matter what species, it may stimulate her enough to start laying eggs, and eating.

[Crystals]

My parasitic Formica have no problem eating on their own, but they seem more or less incapable of caring for their brood.  Most parasites wait until the next spring to lay eggs.

 

Are you sure they were Brachymyrmex and not Lasius neoniger nanitics?  They look really similar and are occasionally found in similar habitat, but they hold some serious grudges against one another (possibly due to similar foraging habits?) and you almost never see two nests within 10 feet of each other.

[AntsAreUs]

My parasitic Formica have no problem eating on their own, but they seem more or less incapable of caring for their brood.  Most parasites wait until the next spring to lay eggs.

 

Are you sure they were Brachymyrmex and not Lasius neoniger nanitics?  They look really similar and are occasionally found in similar habitat, but they hold some serious grudges against one another (possibly due to similar foraging habits?) and you almost never see two nests within 10 feet of each other.

The only lasius that I have seen are L. flavus and L. claviger so yes I'm sure. And also I have 4 queens that I might be posting a journal on.

[AntsAreUs]

Also is it possible to keep a host and parasite together without them killing each other?

[Crystals]

If you have Lasius claviger, then I am pretty sure you have Lasius neoniger in the same area.

 

The parasitic queen will keep trying to kill the host queen.  Even if she doesn't see her, she will detect the queen pheromones and track her down.

[dspdrew]

I just found three more of these the other day at the base of the San Bernardino Mountains, near Highland, California. What's weird through, is I found them at 1800 feet. Even though the mountains I found them in go up to 10,000 feet, the nearest location that gets snow is a long long ways from there.

 

One of these died, so I was able to get some good microscope pictures this time. Not sure what happened to the specimens from last year. I might even still have them somewhere in my pile of vials.

 

 

 

[AntTeen804]

that's does look like the queens I saw.

[MrILoveTheAnts]

That looks like Lasius californicus.