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Cool Finds Under a Rock.


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6 replies to this topic

#1 Offline Gregory2455 - Posted January 19 2015 - 11:33 PM

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This weekend I went on a hike every day, including Friday. On Saturday, I documented this. Yesterday was another hike, and today I went up to Santa Paula, CA. I saw two Formica species, including one that has an ID thread here, a Myrmecocystus sp, Linepithema humile, which is actually a rare sight for me, Dorymyrmex insanus, Liometopum occidentale, and I saw a Camponotus sp. major stick its head out of a hole in the ground. 

 

Anyway, most of the cool things were found when I flipped a particular rock. The rock was not even so large, but there turned out to be a colony of these Formica sp. ants under it. Not particularly cool, but there were also massive velvet mites with them, and some workers visibly had young mites attached to their softer spots (the joints in the legs.) Also, there was a Myrmecophilus sp. individual there, which I found coincidental, because there was a topic about them recently. I was going to see if I could keep the Myrmecophilus sp, but I decided against it and let it go.

 

The velvet mite:

 

The velvet mite compared to the Formica sp. ant from the colony:

 

The Myrmecophilus sp. in a plastic test tube. Could not take a normal picture so I put it into the plastic test tube which I had to snap a few photos and then released it.


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#2 Offline Gregory2455 - Posted January 19 2015 - 11:36 PM

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Then there was Liometopum occidentale on a nearby branch:

 

 

And some Linepithema humile trailing over some cement:



#3 Offline kellakk - Posted January 20 2015 - 3:00 PM

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Nice finds! If I were you I would have tried to keep those velvet mites. They're beautiful!


Current Species:
Camponotus fragilis

Novomessor cockerelli

Pogonomyrmex montanus

Pogonomyrmex rugosus

Manica bradleyi

 

 


#4 Offline dspdrew - Posted January 20 2015 - 3:19 PM

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I love how L. occidentale just bite for no reason at all.



#5 Offline dean_k - Posted January 20 2015 - 3:44 PM

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Nice shots. I would have kept the ant lover and try to add it to a colony.



#6 Offline Gregory2455 - Posted January 20 2015 - 5:31 PM

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Nice shots. I would have kept the ant lover and try to add it to a colony.

I know. I regret not bringing it home and adding it to my Formica fusca colony, as I could have done it while they were still chilled, thus making them initially less aggressive until the cricket can copy the pheromones...


I love how L. occidentale just bite for no reason at all.

They are mean little ants... ;)



#7 Offline AntsAreUs - Posted January 21 2015 - 5:23 PM

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I love how L. occidentale just bite for no reason at all.

I have messed up the mound of a HUGE Tetramorium colony and thousands just came out swarming, they got on my legs and it actually sorta hurts when they bite me.






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