I used to think that this queen was probably Lasius flavus, but with the recent rise in Lasius neoniger related topics, I'm starting to doubt that ID a little.
1. Location of collection: Chicago, Illinois
2. Date of collection (more important for ID's of queens). Unfortunately, I don't remember the exact date, but it was sometime around mid to late September.
3. Habitat of collection: School garden.
4. Length: About 9 to 9.5 millimeters. Note: her abdomen was slightly expanded at time of measurement.
5. Coloration, hue, pattern, and texture: Head: triangular, dark brown, not shiny but not dull, eyes aren't large but aren't small, either. Mandibles are a lighter color than the rest of the head. Thorax: no spikes or bumps, same color as the head. It slopes slightly towards the gaster and is in between dull and shiny. Petiole: not very visible. Gaster: lighter color than the head or abdomen. About twice as long as the thorax. From the top, the plates are a golden-brown, each plate having a gradation from a darker golden-brown to a lighter golden-brown. in between the plates is a thin stripe of film that's a bright golden-yellow. From the side, it's all the golden-yellow film. On the bottom, the plates possess the same general color gradation, but they're a lot smaller and lighter, so they almost blend in with the golden-yellow film. Legs: the femur is just slightly lighter in color than the head & thorax, the tarsal segments are only slightly darker than the golden-yellow of the abdomen, and the tibia's color is in between the two other leg segments.
6. Distinguishing characteristics: One petiole, triangular head, golden-brown abdominal plates.
7. Anything else distinctive: She doesn't seem to get bothered by much and is very calm. She doesn't get freaked out when I take her out of the drawer. The only thing so far that annoys her is really bright lights, like when I look at her under my microscope. She also tends to stay near the water end of the tube, sometimes directly on the cotton.
8. Nest description: None
9. Nuptial flight time and date: Unsure of date, found her around 4 pm.
10. Post the clearest pictures possible:
Edited by Mettcollsuss, February 23 2018 - 3:41 PM.
Answered
