16 replies to this topic

[Dreamer]

Note: please click on images to see full size versions

 

 

Location of collection: Grass fields, valley, Peak District, UK

2. Date of collection: 5th August
3. Habitat of collection: Grass field, a handful of trees
4. Length: Not sure, see comparison photo below
5. Coloration, hue, pattern and texture: Dark brown/black, shiny.
6. Distinguishing characteristics: Sorry, not sure, only been anting for 3 months!
7. Anything else distinctive: not sure.
8. Nest description: nope

9. Nuptial flight time and date: nope

10. Post the clearest pictures possible of the top, side, and face of the ant in question, and if possible, their nest and the habitat they were collected in.
 

 

After thinking this queen was infertile, I've recently found this queen has laid eggs, I want to start a journal, but I don't know what to name it! Can I change a title after a few months?

Found 5th August in the Peak District in a field of grass. Initially the queen had wings. She's either a dark brown or black, seemingly more so than my L.Niger. Here is a recent close up:



This is her carrying the her eggs:



Here is her (top) beside my L.Flavus, so you can see she's almost twice the size:

Edited by Dreamer, December 31 2017 - 3:37 PM.

[VoidElecent]

Length is crucial. Be sure to include it once it's determined.

 

It looks like a Formica queen, to me.

[Dreamer]

Length: 13-15mm

Any ideas? Thanks

Edited by Dreamer, November 26 2017 - 9:40 AM.

[TennesseeAnts]

That is a Formica queen, possibly Fusca group? However, the measurements would be off. Formica queens are usually 12 mm at most. I could be wrong though.   

[Serafine]

The UK doesn't have any Camponotus or Messor, that pretty much leaves Formica as the only option. Formica queens usually measure around 12mm but getting exact their length is often difficult and there always are some rare outlyers that grow bigger than the average queen of their species.

[Dreamer]

Any ideas where I can find a list of formica species in the UK?

[TennesseeAnts]

www.AntWeb.com!

[Dreamer]

I'm going to use this thread as a sort of journal until I have an ID, then I'll move it to the journals section.

 

November 30th
The Queen had dug quite far into the cotton, which was very low on water as I've had this queen longer than all my others! Rather than trying to force move her with her tiny eggs I decided to attach a new test tube, which I filled half with water and put a lot of cotton wool in. Previously I've had lots of space in the test tubes and maybe a quarter or a third water, this time it's over half, but with a lot of cotton in to stop flooding. I've not had any of my other queens move to new test tubes when they've been connected, so we'll see what happens.



December 3rd
She's moved, quickly and without force. Pretty unbelievable after my previous experiences. She's brought her eggs, so I've removed the old test tube and replaced it with a feeding one with some honey and a fruit fly. I'm a bit reluctant to put her into hibernation at this stage, but all my other colonies are going into hibernation, so I think we'll just have to wait until next year for more brood development. Here is a shot of the eggs:

Edited by Dreamer, December 3 2017 - 3:05 PM.

[TennesseeAnts]

I love formica. They are quick growers too! It took my Formica Pacifica 3 weeks to go from egg to worker.

[Serafine]

Formica species do not hibernate with brood (none of them). They will either develop all the way through to workers or get eaten.

Edited by Serafine, December 12 2017 - 4:30 AM.

[Hunter]

Formica species do not hibernate with brood (none of them). They will either develop all the way through to workers or get eaten.

is that what happened to my formica colony lol, dodnt know that

[Batspiderfish]

Seems shiny enough to be Formica fusca, although these pictures are very dark and it would be difficult to spot silvery pubescence on the gaster if it is present.

[Dreamer]

December 30th
The queen has eaten the fruitfly, hard to tell if she's in hibernation along with the rest of my colonies, but the larvae are growing.



This topdown shot may help with the ID:




What do formica pupae look like?

[T.C.]

It's Formica sp. Likely Formica fusca.

 

December 30th
The queen has eaten the fruitfly, hard to tell if she's in hibernation along with the rest of my colonies, but the larvae are growing.

 

What do you mean? Most ant species go into hibernation once it's cold, so although I don't think there is any evidence, formica I believe don't hibernate with brood. So I would wait until the larva turn into workers. You can achieve this quicker with higher temperatures.

[Dreamer]

Thanks TC. My problem with temperature is that all my colonies are in an insulated tank with 2 heat mats, so although I can create a temperature gradient it's quite difficult when all the other colonies are in hibernation. She's in the hottest part. I'm hoping to get some tiny mesh in the next couple of weeks to make much smaller outworlds, then I'll be able to move everything around.

 

The other issue is that the room temperature can vary between 5-18*C during the day depending on outdoor temperatures and heating, so I'm trying to create stability by keeping them all around 13*C.

[Dreamer]

4th March

Despite the snow this week I am starting to bring my colonies out of hibernation by slowly increasing the temperature by 0.5*C per day. It will be a couple of weeks. All her lavae were eaten during hibernation.

Edited by Dreamer, April 28 2018 - 2:27 PM.

[Dreamer]

14th April

Sadly this queen has died on the way out of hibernation. I think it was either due to getting too hot or dehydrated. I've not been doing well at keeping the right temperature gradients for my ants. Since this and my Lasius Flavus queen dying I've decided to move all my queens of the heat mats and keep the outworlds on the mats.

 

I think this queen was Formica Fusca and I'm really sad she died as she was by far my most active queen going out into the outworld and getting food, much more adventurous than any of my other queens.

 

I found her half buried in the white sand of the outworld, covered in white - like flour.