1787 replies to this topic

[CoolColJ]

Spring 14th September 2019

Colobopsis macrocephala 9mm queen
16mm test tube - heat cable
3 workers - clump of eggs?

Whoa, the queen finally laid a clump of eggs I think.
Even with jeweller's loupe on it is hard to tell as they usually have long rice grain looking eggs.
There is pile of white stuff near the queen's head.


red Pheidole queen 6-7mm queen
16mm test tube - heat cable
30+ workers - small clump of eggs/larvae/pupa

Test tube is just about out of water, so I hooked up a new test tube, with heat cable on the new side
Even tipping the queen across, she returned to the old test tube the next day...
Pheidole tend to be really stubborn < 100 workers, so this might take a while

[CoolColJ]

My largest Pheidole antipodum colony of around 300 workers - Queen 5's is getting a handful to keep inside their test tube.
So I figure it's time to move them into a nest.

I have this Tarheel Inception Chamber nest sitting unused, so wanted to try it, but it's a bit small to put a 20mm x 150mm test tube inside.
And using vinyl tubing is to connect the two is tough, due to the difficulty in getting correct tube sizes, plus the ants will swarm out.

So I angled the test tube onto a piece of foil .... brood started falling out
I was tempted to dump them all out, but I'll see if they move in on their own.

The minor workers can squeeze inbeteeen the space of the nest's magnet top... and they have started piling sand in the gaps there.
Even though the queen and all the big brood pile remains in the test tube.

click

Edited by CoolColJ, September 15 2019 - 5:18 AM.

[CoolColJ]

So far they are not moving out... they piled up a heap of sand from the nest in front of the test tube...

[CoolColJ]

Spring 16th September 2019

red Pheidole queen 6-7mm queen
16mm test tube - heat cable
40 workers - small clump of eggs/larvae/pupa

The Pheidole didn't want to move into the new test tube... so in the end I just dumped them out into a container, with the new test tube in there
Which should have pheromone trails, and the workers brought all the brood into the new tube instantly.
Just had to grab the queen with my featherweight forceps and guide her into the tube
sorted!

counted 40 workers, so first major larvae should be well under way

click

[CoolColJ]

Pheidole Antipodum colony started covering the holes of the Byformica water feeder with sand... so scratch that.... will switch to a plugged up small test tube for water instead...

They already made a small graveyard on the foil

Also surprised how active they are, constant trail of ants on patrol

Edited by CoolColJ, September 16 2019 - 12:58 AM.

[CoolColJ]

Sold the little red Pheidole colony above

 

While I have 5 1cm Black Pheidole queens incoming - 4 in one tube, no brood and a single with brood from a friend.

Hopefully they are like the ones in my backyard with the huge heads and 7mm majors

 

https://photos.googl...2lNcDB3cTVNbGhR

Edited by CoolColJ, September 16 2019 - 11:27 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Well after a few days my largest Pheidole antipodum colony didn't move out of the test tube and into the nest I place them in, so I guess I'll wait till the test tube dries out
Since I put the lid back on their combo nest outworld, they treat the whole thing like a nest!
Makes sense as the humidity rises a lot with the lid on.
The fluon stops working with lid on as a result.

They have dug out the sand from the outworld part and put it everywhere, even in the unused nest, a lot on the foil for some reason...

click



I casually ran a heat cable past the nest and I'm surprised they brought out some of the pupa and placed it near the heat cable well outside of the test tube!




Meanwhile in the test tube the brood is a lot more spread out now
Note the blu tack on the nest's water refill hole. Just wanna make sure they don't crawl in there and they can.. they also put sand on the blu tack...

[CoolColJ]

Hope my Myrmecia fulvipes will lay an egg soon

[CoolColJ]

Got my 4 Pheidole queens - these are 9mm, and have much larger red heads than the ones I've had before.
Head size is kinda like Carebara queens.
Should have those large headed 7mm majors I see around here - fingers crossed


Will separate them out, even though there are some eggs in there.

click

Edited by CoolColJ, September 18 2019 - 11:58 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Spring 19th September 2019

Pheidole red headed, black body queens 9mm queen x 4
16mm test tubes

1) Queen 1 - styrofoam chamber - heat cable - first egg laid today
2) Queen 2 - incubator
3) Dual queen setup - incubator - a few eggs


So I split up the 4 above Pheidole queens as such - the dual queen setup has a few of the eggs.
I will keep the queen with the foam chamber setup outside on the heat cable.
The chamber seems to settle her immediately.

The other two setups go into my 27C degree foam box incubator

Edited by CoolColJ, September 19 2019 - 7:21 AM.

[CoolColJ]

Damn that was quick, I just watched the queen in the foam chamber setup pop out an egg just then!

[CoolColJ]

size comparison between Pheidole antipodum and the regular large black/red headed Pheidole species, 9mm queen that just laid an egg


click

[CoolColJ]

Spring 20th September 2019

Pheidole red headed, black body queens 9mm queen x 4
16mm test tubes

1) Queen 1 - styrofoam chamber - heat cable - 8 eggs
2) Queen 2 - incubator
3) Dual queen setup - incubator - a few eggs

Dang, queen 1 with 8 eggs already and fully exposed to light.
That foam chamber really settled her down fast.
You can see that's she's happy - tapping her legs and grooming

edit - 8 eggs!

Edited by CoolColJ, September 19 2019 - 7:36 PM.

[Major]

Just got my own Pheidole Bicarinata colony today, any tips? Well on the general genus Pheidole. I posted it on my Journal.

[CoolColJ]

Just got my own Pheidole Bicarinata colony today, any tips? Well on the general genus Pheidole. I posted it on my Journal.

Posted in your log, but Pheidole are fast growing and easy, generally speaking

[CoolColJ]

Went for a leisurely walk to nearby park and bush trail near my house at 2:30pm. Decided to take an ant capture tube just in case.... and boom came across a big Myrmecia nigrocinta lady skipping across the trail.
I wasn't 100% sure she was a queen, but captured her easily enough anyway.
Then went to a nearby nest that was fighting Polyrachis ammon, and saw she was way larger than the workers, and so she must be a queen!

Anyway I don't think they have flown here yet, next month.
She is probably a forager from last season, which is even better as you know if she survived this long on her own she's of strong stock

But I will be sending this one to someone who bought a queen off me last year that died due to PO bungle... free...



edit - confirmed queen

Edited by CoolColJ, September 19 2019 - 11:27 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Spring 21st September 2019

Colobopsis macrocephala 9mm queen
16mm test tube - styrofoam incubator
3 workers - clump of eggs?

I long suspected the queen is not comfortable exposed to light, my only setup that is such.
Today I found her again at the front of the test tube under the feeding dish.
So I moved them back into my incubator.
But I might release them in the future... since no one seems to want to buy them...


Pheidole red headed, black body queens 9mm queen x 4
16mm test tubes

1) Queen 1 - styrofoam chamber - heat cable - 12 eggs
2) Queen 2 - incubator - 5 eggs
3) Dual queen setup - heat cable - 6+ eggs

Moved the dual queen back outside onto heat cable

all setups have eggs now, but the one with the foam chamber setup has by far the most 12eggs.
Foam girl is laying eggs every few hours.
The foam chamber has a far greater calming effect, even though she is exposed to light.
And a thermo stat controlled heat cable under the foam bit adds warmth

 

Still undecided about the dual queen they don't look so united, but do stay close together, just the egg pile seems dominated by one queen


Pheidole antipodum 14-15mm queens x 3

Heat cable
Queen 10, former member of dual queen - 20mm test tube with styro foam double chamber
100+? workers and a few mini majors - some large larvae, large stack of brood

Queen 4 - 20mm test tube with styro foam double chamber
11 workers (3 mini majors) from donated brood, small clump of unhatched 6 month old 20+ eggs

Queen 5 - 20mm test tube sitting inside THA Inception nest
300+? workers and mini majors - some large larvae, massive teaspoon sized brood pile


Queen 5 in the nest, keeps putting sand on the outworld lid cracks...
They treat the whole things as their nest!
Anytime I open the lid, and so the airflow and humidity drops, they start to crawl up to the top and try to stack sand, lucky the fluon start to work again when the humidity drops

 

Sigh, queen 4 still has unhatched eggs

 

Moved queen 10 to a new test tube a few days ago. I lost patience and dumped them all out into a container and then moved into the new test tube pretty quickly!

All back to normal.

 

Pretty interesting seeing a difference in behaviour between queen 10 and queen 5's colonies.

Queen 5's workers would like to pluck pieces off the foam to use as substrate anytime the test tube was opened.

Queen 10's don't

Edited by CoolColJ, September 20 2019 - 5:43 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Spring 22nd September 2019


Pheidole red headed, black body queens 9mm queen x 4
16mm test tubes

1) Queen 1 - styrofoam chamber - heat cable - 20+ eggs
2) Queen 2 - incubator - 5 eggs?
3) Dual queen setup - heat cable - 10+ eggs

Queen 1, foam chamber girl, cranking out the eggs!
Didn't check on Queen 2 as she is in the incubator
Dual queens have a decent pile of eggs now. And both are sitting side by side attending them, so it's looking good, but I still have my doubts they will stay together once workers reach over 100

Edited by CoolColJ, September 21 2019 - 5:36 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Found another Myrmecia nogrocincta queen yesterday, but 1 hour and 30 mins further down the main trail!
One hell of a walk for one ant... well I was actually hiking for fat loss:P
7 kilometers 2 hours and 38 mins, wooo I'm tired

Then found another one today!
Fairly warm in Sydney so they have flown at a guess.
I was walking on the walking paths around Willougby Leisure Centre that wind around a small patch of nature/bush after my BBall session, and saw her on the path....but I had no capture tubes on me so I had to think fast!
In the end I wedged her inbetween the edges of my fabric holder for my FitBit One, holding it with 2 hands as I walked back to my car, fast for 15mins to get my capture tubes!
There was also a nice green shaded Rhytidoponera aspera queen near her, with an Iridomyrmex worker latched onto her leg... sigh had to leave her behind, but she's a gonna as the place was crawling with Iridomyrmex

Although I won't be keeping either - one will replace a queen I sold that laterdied last year
And will sell the other one

Spring 27th September 2019


Pheidole red headed, black body queens 9mm queen x 4
16mm test tubes

1) Queen 1 - styrofoam chamber - heat cable - 30+ eggs
2) Queen 2 - incubator - 20+ eggs?
3) Dual queen setup - heat cable - 40+ eggs

Damn all the queens have been spewing eggs out!
Well over 20 eggs each now at least.

Someone's been chain laying some eggs

click

Edited by CoolColJ, September 27 2019 - 3:01 AM.

[ForestDragon]

You say pheidole are fast growing the only one I caught this year got to one pupa and ate it and its been months