31 replies to this topic

[CoolColJ]

Crazy - I didn't realise the could have so many different sizes of majors

Are they related to Pheidole at all?

[CoolColJ]

Apparently we get Carebara affinis in Australia... smaller, but quite similar.
Hard to separate them from Pheidole from a quick glance, apart from size

[LC3]

Apparently Antwiki lists them as having a minor caste, a major caste, and a soldier caste. No idea how that is determined but other species in the genus Carebara specifically the ones formerly known as Oligonomyrmx are normally dimorphic (Possible link here? idk I'm not a taxonomist). The entire genus of Carebara in general is known to have huge size differences between certain castes (usually queen and worker). There also seems to be a lot of unidentified species of what would be considered to be part of the old Pheidologeton genus, and indeed antwiki notes that literature usually feature C. diversa as a species complex. 

 

They aren't related to Pheidole other then being in the same subfamily. Carebara is in the Crematogastrini tribe while Pheidole is in the Attini tribe.

[Barristan]

This picture posted a keeper of Carebara diversa (when it was still Pheidologeton diversus) 8 years ago in a German ant keeping forum:



I think you can't really tell when the different sub-castes start and when they end they have fluid transitions from 3 mm to 18 mm.

One thing Pheidole don't but Carebara do is riding on larger ants like you can see in the video.

 

EDIT: Added Link to the post since it was in English ^^

Edited by Barristan, April 6 2018 - 5:55 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Thanks, that's very interesting!

 

I wonder if the smaller Carebara affinis we have in Australia has the same continuously variable worker/major size.

They must be rare as I have not see a single queen/colony offered for sale by any one here, or reports of any being captured

Then again most people will just ID them as Pheidole...

 

The queen look so much like Pheidole queens as well, just larger

And they are also polygynous

 

One of the largest Pheidole species we have here look not unlike a Carebara queen, 10mm

And they do develop super majors

 

Edited by CoolColJ, April 8 2018 - 9:07 PM.

[Winston]

This picture posted a keeper of Carebara diversa (when it was still Pheidologeton diversus) 8 years ago in a German ant keeping forum:



I think you can't really tell when the different sub-castes start and when they end they have fluid transitions from 3 mm to 18 mm.

One thing Pheidole don't but Carebara do is riding on larger ants like you can see in the video.

 

EDIT: Added Link to the post since it was in English ^^

damn that's an amazing

[kalimant]

Crazy - I didn't realise the could have so many different sizes of majors

Are they related to Pheidole at all?
 

 

Carebara diversa is polymorphic, so you get all size ranges of workers.

The genus is not even in the same tribe as Pheidole (Crematogastrini vs Attini):

http://www.antwiki.o..._et_al_2015.pdf

Edited by kalimant, April 9 2018 - 9:10 AM.

[CoolColJ]

Looks like someone found one of the Australian Carebara species

 

video

 

click for larger

 

 

Edited by CoolColJ, May 2 2018 - 8:21 PM.

[CoolColJ]

Could be the early stages of a Carebarra affinis - black queen, red workers and majors.

The colony above is only 1 year old, and the queen did not produce any eggs until a few months after capture

 

Edited by CoolColJ, May 2 2018 - 4:50 PM.

[LC3]

Looks like someone found one of the Australian Carebara species
 
video
https://video-syd2-1...851&oe=5AEA396D
 
click for larger

 

 

You sure this isn’t Pheidole antipodum?

[CoolColJ]

You sure this isn’t Pheidole antipodum?

 

 

There are multiple sizes of majors, so that makes it less likely to be Pheidole.

yes there are some species of Pheidole that can have super majors, but they have a different appearance

Edited by CoolColJ, May 2 2018 - 2:34 PM.

[LC3]

P.antipodum is rather interesting among Pheidole, they’re a lot like former Pheidologeton Carebara in certain regards; large queens to workers, highly polymorphic, (most likely) subterranean.

http://www.antwiki.o...idole_antipodum

[CoolColJ]

P.antipodum is rather interesting among Pheidole, they’re a lot like former Pheidologeton Carebara in certain regards; large queens to workers, highly polymorphic, (most likely) subterranean.

http://www.antwiki.o...idole_antipodum

 

The black queen and red workers does seem to match the profile

[CoolColJ]

From Antwiki link -

 

This queen was found in Perth

 

 

Heterick (2009) - In the SWBP, WA these ants can be locally common in both laterite and sandy soils in the Perth region, where they are often found in association with termites. Nests are very frequently located under rocks. They also occur in the wheatbelt and along the south coast. Elsewhere in Australia, this ant has been recorded from NSW, the NT, SA and Vic.

Wheeler (1934) - A few specimens of this extraordinary ant were taken by Dr. Darlington from a small colony at Nancy Cove (X. 24, '31). It is rather rare in the vicinity of Perth but I found many fine colonies at Margaret River. Unlike nearly all the other species of the huge, cosmopolitan genus Pheidole, it is decidedly hypogacic in habits, has very poorly developed eyes and an extremely polymorphic soldier caste. The colonies must be very difficult to detect during the dry season. In the moist open forests about Margaret River, however, they are easily found under large stones deeply imbedded in the soil. When fully developed the colonies comprise hundreds of individuals and thousands of subspherical larvaei, and it is only in such flourishing colonies that one encounters perfect series of soldiers showing all the transitions between huge, large-headed forms and minute, small-headed workers proper. The appearance and behaviour of this ant is so different from other species of Pheidole that I am inclined to regard Anisopheidole as an independent, exclusively Australian genus.

[CoolColJ]

The owner of that colony says the queen is over 1.5cm big so it most likely is a Carebara.

She cannot turn in a 16mm test tube.

 

P.antipodum queens are around 13mm

[CoolColJ]

C.vespillo.
Ahh if only I was in asia, peeps are selling these

Queen：13-14mm
Minor 1.3-1.8mm
Medial/majors 3.5-7.8mm



https://img.alicdn.com/imgextra/i4/24298958/TB2hHgscFXXXXcJXXXXXXXXXXXX_!!24298958.jpg

https://img.alicdn.com/imgextra/i3/24298958/TB2wwsMcFXXXXX_XXXXXXXXXXXX_!!24298958.jpg

Edited by CoolColJ, May 6 2018 - 12:40 AM.

[CoolColJ]

C. Affinis

Queen：18-20MM
Minor：2.0-2.5MM
Major :4.0-15MM

https://img.alicdn.com/imgextra/i1/24298958/T2mliaXlRXXXXXXXXX_!!24298958.jpg
https://img.alicdn.com/imgextra/i4/24298958/T2g8eaXnBXXXXXXXXX_!!24298958.jpg
https://img.alicdn.com/imgextra/i3/24298958/T2c8CaXelXXXXXXXXX_!!24298958.jpg

[CoolColJ]

C.latinodus

Queen：14-15mm
Minor：1.8-2.3mm
Major：3.8-12mm

https://img.alicdn.com/imgextra/i4/24298958/T2_xOaXc8bXXXXXXXX_!!24298958.jpg
https://img.alicdn.com/imgextra/i3/24298958/T2pi5aXb0XXXXXXXXX_!!24298958.jpg
https://img.alicdn.com/imgextra/i3/24298958/T2QyWaXehXXXXXXXXX_!!24298958.jpg
https://img.alicdn.com/imgextra/i1/24298958/T2z5SaXgtXXXXXXXXX_!!24298958.jpg
https://img.alicdn.com/imgextra/i3/24298958/T2yiWaXepXXXXXXXXX_!!24298958.jpg

[Shifty189]

Sorry to go so far off topic here, but what is with the test tube? Why would anyone set one up with so little water?

Edited by Shifty189, May 8 2018 - 6:06 PM.

[rbarreto]

Sorry to go so far off topic here, but what is with the test tube? Why would anyone set one up with so little water?

 

The cotton moves back as the water evaporates.