17 replies to this topic

[steelchair]

1. Location of collection: Michigan. The Thumb
2. Date of collection: 9-20-2014
3. Habitat of collection:My yard and sidewalk. nests in the grass
4. Length (from head to gaster):6mm
5. Color, hue, pattern and texture: Queens red orange with striped gaster and red orange legs. Workers are brighter orange.
6. Distinguishing characteristics: 
7. Anything else distinctive: 
8. Nest description:Nests in sandy areas in the lawn.Flat to the ground some over a foot in diameter.                                                                                                                             

[Gregory2455]

Lasius?

[dspdrew]

That would be my guess, but what do I know about ants in that area...

[benjiwuf]

it does resemble my lasius alienus, but I'm no good at ID's yet.

[Crystals]

Definitely a Lasius queen. 

Not one I have seen in person, so that rules out neoniger and crypticus.

Unusual amount of red, but it is almost impossible to ID species with Lasius queens.  You will have to wait for the 5-8th generation workers.

 

She is fully claustral, if that helps.

[Gregory2455]

It doesn't look parasitic, so that is a good sign.

[steelchair]

My yard and pond area contain many nests and the workers are a bright orange. I caught over ten of these queens.

[Gregory2455]

Do they smell like citrus?

[dean_k]

Looks identical to mine I caught 2 weeks ago. The workers are orange-ish as well. So, Lasius.

[steelchair]

Do they smell like citrus?

Not that I can smell.

[AntsAreUs]

Lasius flavus? From all the information it has to be?

[steelchair]

After looking at several ant websites, I will agree with you. Thank you.

[James C. Trager]

Appearance of the ant, time of flight, and nest habitat all point to Lasius neoniger.

[steelchair]

Correct me if I am wrong. Lasius Neoniger workers are a darker color brown. The worker ants that I observed in my yard are a bright orange almost yellow. These nests are where my queens are from.

[Mercutia]

Are you sure they came from the same nest steelchair?

[steelchair]

Yes. When they were flying I watched the males and females both exit from these nests. The orange workers were also present. I have a pond in my yard and the soil is sandy. This is where most of the nests are located. I have watched these nests for over two years now. In the spring I will take some pictures. There isn't much to see now except bare ground.

[Gregory2455]

Those orange workers could have been parasitics, and these alates could have been the last of the original colony? Did those orange workers have a citrus smell?

[steelchair]

No citrus smell that I can detect. It is not just one colony either. There are around four nests that are over one foot in diamater and around twenty more that I can count on my two acres. I have seen these alates several times this year at the largest nests. I think I even witnessed the largest nest dumping alates at the end of September. There were no males present and the alates were out but not flying.