1787 replies to this topic

[CoolColJ]

Spring 22nd October 2018

Rhytidoponera, green/gold 8mm queen
16mm Test tube with aquarium filter wool dam, cardboard floor substrate - in outworld
10+ eggs, 10 brood boost cocoons
Gave her 10 of the cocoons I found today.
This moved forward to see what all the comotion was, and instantly carted every cocoon to her little space between the cardboard substrate and the water dam


Rhytidoponera sp2, green 7-8mm queen2 - purple/blue gaster iridesence
16mm Test tube with aquarium filter wool dam, cardboard floor substrate - in outworld
10+ eggs, 11 brood boost cocoons
Gave her 11 cocoons. Well she is the favored one, and the one I may keep
This queen took longer to respond, but she too eventually moved all the cocoons.

 
Well that was quick, the first queen is opening a cocoon right now

edit - no I was wrong

Edited by CoolColJ, October 21 2018 - 11:34 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Found a 7mm Pheidole queen under a brick at work this morning, so it looks like they are flying again already!?
Although she has a mite on her gaster
I'm undecided about keeping her, but she does look different to all my past and current Pheidole queens
 
yeah she's hanging onto my paint brush
click to enlarge

I found 3 more of these under the very same brick at work this morning, so they must have flown over the weekend, I have Mondays off
They must be a true polygynous species. Maybe I dump them all into the same test tube the first one is in

[CoolColJ]

She should be arriving tomorrow

 

By the size of some of the larvae, I think there are some nanitic majors in the first batch!

 

Edited by CoolColJ, October 22 2018 - 3:41 PM.

[YsTheAnt]

Awesome! Try feeding your other queen some protein and sugar, the cleaning out what's left 24 hours later. Keep her in the dark for a month at around 30-35 Celsius and see what happens, that might be what it takes to get her goin!

[CoolColJ]

Awesome! Try feeding your other queen some protein and sugar, the cleaning out what's left 24 hours later. Keep her in the dark for a month at around 30-35 Celsius and see what happens, that might be what it takes to get her goin!

She's in my ghetto styrofoam incubator which holds those temps and is dark with the lid shut.

I might give her a few pupa from the second queen to help her as well.
She is laying eggs, and has laid over 80 eggs at one stage, but she's just not a good mum.

Edited by CoolColJ, October 23 2018 - 2:32 AM.

[CoolColJ]

Spring 23rd October 2018

2x Aphaenogaster longiceps 12-13mm queen
16mm test tube - heat cable
4? eggs, about  6-7 brood boost larvae
 

She discarded about half of the brood boost larvae, probably damaged from handling and she ate them, to the front of the test tube (again a great mum, she cleans up!)

 

Found another queen, under a rock today, she was just sitting there, no claustral chamber or anything... Put the new queen in, and they are friendly to each other.

The newcomer is cleaning the existing queen

 

Although I think a 16mm test tube is a tad squishy for both to have access to the water cotton

 

I never thought these girls were polygynous!

They are from the same area within a few metres, so could be even from the same colony

Edited by CoolColJ, October 22 2018 - 9:30 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Myrmecia nigrocincta queens x4

Sent off 7 today, and 1 more tomorrow, so 4 left.
2 I'm reserving for Davejay

The other 2 I'm keeping around for now.
1 has 3 eggs easily visible, and another in a tub and tubes setup, 1 egg.

These girls seems pretty level headed, and don't eat their eggs the moment you check up on them
They feel quite pet like in the traditional sense.


--

I came cross a nest of these today in a new area near me, just a pile of rocks that had no activity.
Pulled the top rock, and boom big chambers filled to the brim of these girls!
Some cocoons, 20-30 larvae... and for a brief moment I thought about brood boosting my queens, but without a jump suit, ahh fat chance....
Looked like close to a 1000 bullants here... a 100 came hoping toward my last known location as I kept changing positions!

Edited by CoolColJ, October 23 2018 - 2:31 AM.

[CoolColJ]

Spring 24th October 2018

 

Both my second Pheidole antipodum and Camponotus suffusus bendingesis arrived today, one as a gift, the other via trade.

Will update on them later, but both were not packed that well.\, but did arrive unharmed.

I normally send single queen test tubes inside a $3AUD Kmart pool noodle that is chopped down, 1 of these makes 8 setups, can hold a 20mm test tube.

I put a cotton ball inside to take up the space, and cap with cotton balls held down by gaff tape on either end.

Crush resistant and can take a drop from any height.


Myrmecia nigrocincta queens x4

One of the queens from the second batch in a sealed test tube laid another 3 eggs for 6 total!

Will have to move her to a tub and tubes setup soon.

And a queen from the two most recently caught laid an egg.

 

So 3 of the 4 queens here have eggs, 1,1 and 6

 

 

Pheidole Colony F - Banished Phediole sp. red head/black body 9mm queen - originally a partner of Pheidole Colony A
16mm test tube, cotton double chamber setup - heatcable
10 Nanitics, small clump of brood

 

They finally moved to the new connected test tube without a light this morning

Well their test tube is really low on water, but still wet, and I connected both test tubes via vinyl tubing piece several days ago. They still didn't budge. red film around new one and heat cable.

Removed the setup off the heat cable a few times, and let the condensation dry up.

This morning was colder, and I put it back on the heat cable, warm side on the new test tube 1 inch from water cotton.

After an hour a few workers were hanging out in the new test tube - this is the cue!

After that they have moved all the brood across, 8 workers, now the queen remains, which the workers will get moving shortly, once they move what looks like a major larvae, which seems to be a bit stuck on a wet patch

Edited by CoolColJ, October 23 2018 - 9:13 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Pheidole cf antipodum 14mm queen 2
16mm Test tube - in styrofoam and heat cable incubator
4 pupa, some large larvae, over 30 brood

My second Pheidole antipodum, that I received from Western Australia today, has tons of brood for a first batch, of which 4 or so are tiny nanitic worker pupa.
But there are some larvae already much larger than these pupa. So they must be small majors!

I think my other queen has a slightly larger head, and maybe longer body as well

Her brood was a bit scattered. She found and gathered most, but I gave her a helping hand for the ones stuck on the top of the test tube.
Used a small paint brush to move them to her.

click to enlarge

Edited by CoolColJ, October 24 2018 - 2:36 AM.

[DaveJay]

Myrmecia nigrocincta queens x4

Sent off 7 today, and 1 more tomorrow, so 4 left.
2 I'm reserving for Davejay

The other 2 I'm keeping around for now.
1 has 3 eggs easily visible, and another in a tub and tubes setup, 1 egg.

These girls seems pretty level headed, and don't eat their eggs the moment you check up on them
They feel quite pet like in the traditional sense.


--

I came cross a nest of these today in a new area near me, just a pile of rocks that had no activity.
Pulled the top rock, and boom big chambers filled to the brim of these girls!
Some cocoons, 20-30 larvae... and for a brief moment I thought about brood boosting my queens, but without a jump suit, ahh fat chance....
Looked like close to a 1000 bullants here... a 100 came hoping toward my last known location as I kept changing positions!

It would take a brave man to raid Jumping Jack nests!

[CoolColJ]

It would take a brave man to raid Jumping Jack nests!

A jump suit, gloves and a helmet and I'm there

[CoolColJ]

Camponotus suffusus bendigensis 17mm queen 2
20mm Test tube - in styrofoam and heat cable incubator
no eggs

Here is the second Camponotus queen I got via trade today
I think she is the same species as my other one, but her maroon thorax is not as visible to the naked eye
Slightly different pattern and the maroon thorax patch is not as large.
And she is slightly smaller
 
I put her in my ghetto incubator that currently hits 29-30 degrees outside the test tube and higher inside, plus it's dark.
This should hopefully spur her to lay some eggs.
I believe she was caught from a premature flight, as these should not be flying now.
 
click to enlarge

[DaveJay]

You can see the difference between the two, probably locality differences.

[CoolColJ]

Spring 25th October 2018


Melophorus sp.- red black 6-7mm queen
refillable gypsum plugged test tube connected to outworld - heatcable
1 minor worker, 20 eggs/ first insta larve, 1 medium larvae
 

Almost 2 months now, and even with a heat cable their eggs still look like eggs
They must need even more heat...

 
 
I double wrapped the heat cable around their test tube now, an inch from the water source, which should provide more heat due to greater surface contact area and a tighter connection.
They have responded by keeping the brood inside this little "tunnel" of warmth and the worker carting in lots of substrate chunks from the outworld while I was asleep.
The queen has been moving the substrate around to where she likes them, and is also sitting inside the heat cable coverage
 
Gave them a dead termite worker as well, which the worker had moved to the water gypsum plug, but has now placed it next to the brood where the heat cable is.
Good - less chance of mold here

Edited by CoolColJ, October 24 2018 - 9:58 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Myrmecia nigrocincta queens x6

 

Queen 1 laid 2 eggs, and has 3 now
Queen 2 laid another egg and is now up to 7!

Queen 3 laid another 2 and has 3 eggs

Queen 4 laid another 2 and has 4 eggs.

 

Need to take a pic of them, the eggs are huge compared to other ants of similar size!

 

 

Still feeding them all in test tubes, except one in a tub and tubes, raw honey, these 3D printed feeding dishes are great for this

Will move the 7 egg queen into a tub and tubes.

Got a bunch of termite alate nymphs for them today

 

I went off track today and found another 2 queens!

One ran into her claustral chamber, and I had to flush her out, she looks big and plump, ready to lay

Edited by CoolColJ, October 24 2018 - 8:47 PM.

[CoolColJ]

4x Pheidole sp., red, darker gaster 7mm
16mm test tube - heat cable

 

I put the 3 queens I found recently into the same test tube of the queen I found last week under the same brick.

All 4 are getting along fine. They might be all from the same colony.

 

They have pulled a bunch of cotton and placed it in front of the water dam as substrate and have 15+ eggs on and around it

Quite different from other red Pheidole that bury eggs into the cotton water dam

[DaveJay]

Myrmecia nigrocincta queens x6

Queen 1 laid 2 eggs, and has 3 now
Queen 2 laid another egg and is now up to 7!
Queen 3 laid another and has 2 eggs
Queen 4 laid another and has 2 eggs.

Need to take a pic of them, the eggs are huge compared to other ants of similar size!


Still feeding them all in test tubes, except one in a tub and tubes, raw honey, these 3D printed feeding dishes are great for this
Will move the 7 egg queen into a tub and tubes.
Got a bunch of termite alate nymphs for them today

I went off track today and found another 2 queens!
One ran into her claustral chamber, and I had to flush her out, she looks big and plump, ready to lay

This is just getting ridiculous now!!!
I found one Myrmecia pilosula worker a while ago and haven't found a nest or any other workers since even though I go to the location at least once a week. Two possibilities are that the nest is in an adjoining back yard, unlikely, or that the nest was killed off when a large gum tree was removed.

[CoolColJ]

edit -  I was wrong about the egg count, revised numbers

 

Queen 1 laid 2 eggs, and has 3 now
Queen 2 laid another egg and is now up to 7!

Queen 3 laid another 2 and has 3 eggs

Queen 4 laid another 2 and has 4 eggs.

[YsTheAnt]

I would suggest getting a good supply of termites for your Ph. antipodum to be colony. They are specialist subterranean predators of termites.

[CoolColJ]

Spring 25th October 2018


Melophorus sp.- red black 6-7mm queen
refillable gypsum plugged test tube connected to outworld - heatcable
1 minor worker, 13 brood

 

Almost 2 months now, and even with a heat cable their eggs still look like eggs
They must need even more heat...

 
 
I double wrapped the heat cable around their test tube now, an inch from the water source, which should provide more heat due to greater surface contact area and a tighter connection.
They have responded by keeping the brood inside this little "tunnel" of warmth and the worker carting in lots of substrate chunks from the outworld while I was asleep.
The queen has been moving the substrate around to where she likes them, and is also sitting inside the heat cable coverage
 
Gave them a dead termite worker as well, which the worker had moved to the water gypsum plug, but has now placed it next to the brood where the heat cable is.
Good - less chance of mold here

20 eggs, first insta larvae and 1 medium sized larvae now.

Although double wrapping the heat cable caused the gypsum plug to leak water, and the single worker drowned, but not dead, I just pulled her out, and she is dormant, should wake up soon.
I saw her twitch her antenna when I put my bright LED lit jeweller's loupe on her....