625 replies to this topic

[CatsnAnts]

If you limit a Crematogaster colony’s food, they will implode fast. I’ve seen it happen to several of my customers.

Ah, I see. Well then, I will probably raise them to workers so I can get an ID, and then give them some time to move into my local woods. I have no intentions of caring for an extremely large colony of these, lol.

[CatsnAnts]

Oops, duplicate I guess. Might as well make use of this post to point out that I am currently keeping half of my ants in my room and half outside where they will experience the natural fluctuation in summer temperatures (which is where my Colobopsis laid her first egg). They are in the shade, of course. Maybe I should put some of my new Pheidole out here, it is a lot warmer.

Edited by CatsnAnts, July 10 2020 - 6:48 AM.

[madbiologist]

Ant Colonies Update (lots of pictures!):
7/4/2020

All of my pictures were taken using an $8 macro lens, I have been putting some money aside for a better camera next year.

Established Colonies:

Temnothorax curvispinosus (1 queen)
I have a plan to put this colony in a sort of “homemade” hickory nut and place them somewhere outside where they can be free to move wherever they want, or I can observe them and feed them from my yard if they stay.

Temnothorax curvispinosus (no queen)
Updated in other journal.

Founding Colonies:

4X Pheidole bicarinata (1 queen)
Colony 1- Lots of eggs! All in a very neat pile, no larvae yet though:



Colony 2- Eggs as well:



*NEW* Colony 3- I actually ended up releasing a majority (about 15) of the Pheidole bicarinata queens that I caught recently. However, I’m taking Mad’s advice and decided to keep two just to be on the safe side. Neither have eggs yet.
*NEW* Colony 4- ^^^

Pheidole bicarinata (3 queen)
This colony has now surpassed their original egg pile by a lot. I’m still worried about when workers come because I know it is likely inevitable that they will fight:




5X Pheidole cf. tysoni (1 queen)
Colony 1- This queen has lots of eggs, still no larvae. I’m super excited for these, probably my favorite species by far, their coloration is gorgeous:



Colony 2- This queen is pretty much the same as queen 1, but a few of her eggs are scattered. I’m not too worried, as I just caught three more of these:


*NEW* Colony 3- All three of these queens are sitting in their collection container. I have test tubes arriving tomorrow (they sent me the wrong ones, so I had to get a replacement )
*NEW* Colony 4- ^^^
*NEW* Colony 5- ^^^

Colobopsis impressa (1 queen)
This queen was moved into a piece of vinyl tubing to save space, and lo and behold, she laid a noodle egg. I’m going to need to move her back into a test tube once they arrive because the water reservoir on these “makeshift” test tubes is really crappy.

Temnothorax curvispinosus (15 queen)
I think they might be eating their eggs as they lay them, there’s not very many:



Temnothorax ambiguus (8 queen)
These queens are doing really well! I’m surprised at the size of the eggs compared to the queens:



2X Pheidole pilifera (1 queen)
Colony 1- Still no eggs:

*NEW* Colony 2- Just caught recently.

Crematogaster sp. (1 queen)
Slowed down on her egg-laying, still doing good:





*NEW* Solenopsis cf. molesta (6 queen)
I just caught six queens of these, waiting for test tubes so I can put them in one.

Temnothorax pergandei (1 queen)
EGGGSS, she laid two eggs:

Colobopsis impressa actually prefer to live in bone dry nests. They get all their water through foraging. You'll want to give your queen sugar water a few times during founding though, as they are usually on the thin side. On another note, are you certain those are Pheidole bicarinata? After seeing images of them, (and seeing how well the group of 3 is doing) I think those queens may actually be Pheidole morissii, which are known to be polygynous in their northern range.

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[TennesseeAnts]

Those Pheidole are definitely Ph. bicarinata.

[CatsnAnts]

 Ya, I have to say I’m pretty sure they are P. bicarinata as well, they are the same size as my P. tysoni.

 

EDIT: also, that may have been why my Colobopsis queen laid an egg, the water reservoir ran dry. Also, she hangs as far away from the water reservoir as she can. Makes sense now that you mention it.

Edited by CatsnAnts, July 10 2020 - 7:57 AM.

[FeedTheAnts]

This is probably one of my favorite journals on here btw. Just a reminder guys, when quoting posts it's best to delete the pics out of the quote. Especially good journals like this, with lots of pics already, we don't need to see them twice.

[CatsnAnts]

This is probably one of my favorite journals on here btw. Just a reminder guys, when quoting posts it's best to delete the pics out of the quote. Especially good journals like this, with lots of pics already, we don't need to see them twice.

Thank you , I actually just read through one of your older collective journal’s a few days ago (I’m not stalking you or anything, just a good read ). And ya, the worst part about the pictures is having to scroll through them all, again, lol. I used to do it all of the time

[RushmoreAnts]

This is probably one of my favorite journals on here btw. Just a reminder guys, when quoting posts it's best to delete the pics out of the quote. Especially good journals like this, with lots of pics already, we don't need to see them twice.

Thank you , I actually just read through one of your older collective journal’s a few days ago (I’m not stalking you or anything, just a good read ). And ya, the worst part about the pictures is having to scroll through them all, again, lol. I used to do it all of the time

Yeah, I do find that a bit annoying. I also usually delete any text other than what I’m specifically replying to, unless I’m feeling lazy.

[CatsnAnts]

Formicarium Update:

I have just poured the next formicarium! This time, I plan on waiting a full two days before removing it from the mold, unlike last time when I only waited a day. I actually finished designing the templates in Procreate, and made little “template sheets” that I can use to make all of these formicaria almost exactly uniform in terms of where things are placed (the tunnels will all be different, however). Have a look:

 

This is right after I finished pouring it. I actually had to cut down the frame so that I could use a trowel and get a perfectly level bottom (now they are all a standard height of 1.5 inches):

 

And finally, I would just like to point out that I am now using a 60% sanded grout and 40% un-sanded grout mixture rather than just 100% un-sanded grout. This should help to make the formicarium very sturdy. I also made the mixture slightly more liquids (as I said I would do), and found a method of removing air bubbles before I poured the mixture. It looks very clean so far, so I’m hoping that no stray air bubbles show up when I take it out in two days from now. The micro-air bubbles should also be way, way less noticeable. IF, and I mean IFFFF, this formicarium turns out exactly how I want it, I may put it up for sale, however, I will probably keep it for my personal use/testing:

 

edit: ahhhhh why aren’t my images working

double edit: okay, I fixed it

Edited by CatsnAnts, July 10 2020 - 10:25 AM.

[ANTdrew]

So you don’t want a several thousands strong colony of Crematogaster that spend all day, every day plotting new ways to escape and need to be fed handfuls of fresh insects daily?
Seriously, though, I’d give them a chance. I get it if you don’t, though.

[madbiologist]

Agreed, Crematogaster are the best! They're some of the only ants here that can keep pace with Tetramorium growth wise.

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[CatsnAnts]

That’s the opposite of what I want, I want a mid-sized colony that doesn’t grow exponentially! I will, however, give them a chance, I wish they had smaller colonies because gosh darn are they cute.

[madbiologist]

Oh ok, I tend tend to like just about everything, as you can probably tell by the horde of colonies I have. You should look at trying to keep cryptics, they have small colonies and are generally awesome looking, although their care is fairly specialized.

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[TechAnt]

That’s the opposite of what I want, I want a mid-sized colony that doesn’t grow exponentially! I will, however, give them a chance, I wish they had smaller colonies because gosh darn are they cute.

I mean, you can just limit their protein food input so they don't grow as fast / set a colony member max.

[madbiologist]

They'll escape if that happens. There's no barrier that can stop a starving Crematogaster colony. They'll spend much more time searching for and attempting to exploit any weaknesses in your setup.

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[CatsnAnts]

Ant Colonies Update
7-11-2020

I’m using my IPad this time to make an update, so I can actually access the full array of reply options that I never knew existed lol.
No pictures this time, maybe tomorrow. I just have quite a few “happenings” that I wanted to share.

Established Colonies:

Temnothorax Curvispinosus (1 queen)
- I still can’t decide how I want to make their “outdoor home”, but I will post when I complete it.

Temnothorax curvispinosus (no queen)
- Lots of eggs are suddenly being laid, will do an update tomorrow if the ants move out of the way for a picture of the brood.

Founding Colonies (this list is now in order from my favorite colony to my least favorite):

*NEW* Pheidole tysoni (3 queen)
- Yep, I combined all three of my most recent queens of this species into a single test tube. I put them all together last night and checked in them this morning with a surprise that they had about 10 eggs already. These queens seem really passive towards one another, although I’m worried about the workers, but I’m still gonna risk it for the biscuit. If this colony turns out, they will by far be my most prized colony .

2X Pheidole tysoni (1 queen)
Queen 1- So once again, it is just these original two queens in the section, as the other three have been put together ^^^. These queen are still doing great, and I expect to see larvae any day now.
Queen 2- Same as queen 1.

Temnothorax ambiguus (8 queen)
- This colony and my T. pergandei queen are tied for third. Their egg pile has halted in growth, but it’s pretty large where it stands. I can’t wait for workers, so many cool formicarium/terrarium setup ideas!

Temnothorax pergandei (1 queen)
- Has three eggs at this point. I figured she’d have more by this point, but I guess her small size puts a limit on how many eggs she can lay, especially with how big they are in comparison to her.

Colobopsis impressa (1 queen)
- This queen is definitely a rarity around where I live, and their behaviors/aboreal habits will make for some interesting setups as well. I also think that the majors of this species are adorable. She still only has one egg, although I moved her into a new setup in a test tube with a piece of vinyl tubing. I’ll show pictures soon.

Crematogaster sp. (1 queen)
- Even though I said I didn’t want a large colony, this species is still one of my favorites, especially with the interesting coloration on this queen. I will keep them for as long as I can, and may even try to create a moat-terrarium.

Pheidole bicarinata (3 queen)
- This is pretty neat colony as well, although ants with a yellow coloration are just so, fricken, pretty (hence, why P. tysoni and T. ambiguus are my favorites). They have a growing egg pile, still, and I’m expecting a lot of workers when these eggs hatch (if they hatch).

2X Pheidole pilifera (1 queen)
Queen 1- These queen are pretty unique two, and I like them partially because they are Pheidole, and partially because of their rarity around here. I’m just hoping to get one successful colony of Pheidole this year. Neither of these queens have eggs yet.
Queen 2- ^^^.

Temnothorax curvispinosus (15 queen)
- This colony is still doing, okay? I don’t know if their going to make it to workers, I may need to brood boost them to give them some encouragement.

2X Pheidole bicarinata (1 queen)
Queen 1- Pretty generic species once you learn to black light, but I still have a place for Pheidole in my heart. Both queen have eggs.
Queen 2- ^^^.

Solenopsis sp. (5 queen)
- It’s some sort of theif ant, but I can’t determine the exact species yet. Likely just S. molesta. There used to be 6 of these queens, but I accidentally crushed one... whoops.

*NEW* Temnothorax ambiguus/curvispinosus (3 queen - experiment)
- Right now, I have two T. curvispinosus queens and 1 T. ambiguus queen in a test tube. So far, all three queens are getting along and have a small pile of eggs (which got even smaller after I moved them into a test tube from a piece of vinyl tubing, I crushed some). Wouldn’t that be neat if I could have a mixed-species colony?

As of right now, I have 15 test tubes worth of colonies.

Edited by CatsnAnts, July 13 2020 - 6:32 PM.

[CatsnAnts]

Ant Colonies Update (1/2)
7-13-2020

This update is going to come in a two parts since I can’t fit all of the photos in one reply. There will be a formicarium progress update attached as well in the second part.

Established Colonies:

Temnothorax Curvispinosus (1 queen)
- Instead of moving this colony outside, I may move them into a naturalistic terrarium setup. I got some neat glass bowls for a good price at Walmart, and I need some opinions for what styles/colonies the terrariums should have. This colony is still doing great as always.

Temnothorax curvispinosus (no queen)
- Update is coming in other journal.

Founding Colonies (No longer in order of favorites):

Pheidole tysoni (3 queen)
- These queens are still very friendly towards each other, but it seems like one queen is dominating the egg pile. I may split them up since I’m getting a little paranoid that they might fight, but I’ll see how it goes for now:




2X Pheidole tysoni (1 queen)
Queen 1- Queen one is basically the same. She takes good care of her eggs:



Queen 2- Queen two is in the same position. All five queens of this species still have retained their wings:



Temnothorax ambiguus (8 queen)
- All if these queens are getting along, and their egg pile is getting surprisingly large:




Temnothorax pergandei (1 queen)
- She now has four eggs, and is still keeping a close eye on them:



Colobopsis impressa (1 queen)
- She still only has one egg, but it’s probably because I check on her pretty often along with the other queens. I’m hoping she lays more eggs soon:



Crematogaster sp. (1 queen)
- She is still laying more eggs, I’m getting more and more excited for this queen by the day:



Pheidole bicarinata (3 queen)
- Well, I had a nice surprise this morning. Apparently, one of the queens had half of a leg missing! They seem fine now, but it’s only going to get worse. I may just remove that queen and the other non-dominant queen from the test tube:




2X Pheidole pilifera (1 queen)
Queen 1- This queen doesn’t have eggs yet:

Queen 2- This queen also doesn’t have eggs yet:


Temnothorax curvispinosus (15 queen)
- I saw one queen grabbing another queen by the antennae earlier, but the fighting quickly broke up. Maybe the two separate groups were apart for long enough to actually identify as separate colonies:

Edited by CatsnAnts, July 14 2020 - 4:28 AM.

[CatsnAnts]

(2/2)

2X Pheidole bicarinata (1 queen)
Queen 1- Has a pretty good pile of eggs:


Queen 2- She seems to have eaten a lot of her eggs:



Solenopsis carolinensis (5 queen)
- I'm calling these queens Solenopsis carolinensis because they look/flew at a different time than the S. molesta I found yesterday. They have a few eggs:



Temnothorax ambiguus/curvispinosus (2 queen - experiment)
- I decided to remove the second T. curvispinosus queen because she was always off by herself. This pair is honestly really sweet to see, it’s cute that two different species get along so well like this:





*NEW* Solenopsis molesta (15+ queen)
- Just caught a bunch of these queens and shoved them in a test tube:




*NEW* Monomorium minimum (1 queen)
- Just a single queen. I’ve always wanted this species for some reason:


*NEW* Lasius cf. umbratus (1 queen)
- I might keep her and attempt to raise her.

*NEW* Strumigenys Louisianae (??? queen)
- Found this colony tonight in a twig! It doesn’t appear to have a queen, but they may have an ergatoid Queen? I can’t really tell:





Formicarium Progress

I just finished my second prototype, and I repainted the first one since apricot is ugly. I need to make some minor tweaks to the recipe, and I am going to shorten down the height a little bit too:



I did accidentally make the second prototype backwards, whoops. But I also got some acrylic paint as well as some small petri dishes that I can use for the water towers now.

ALSO, I got four glass bowls for miniature terrariums! I need to decide the themes of them/who should live in them (which of my colonies?):


Edit: HEBZIFINWNAKZOCNNE I hate when formatting doesn’t work. Sorry if it doesn’t show up correctly!

Edited by CatsnAnts, July 13 2020 - 7:14 PM.

[TechAnt]

I think the Temnothorax ambiguus/curvispinosus experiment is really interesting. Hoping they make it to workers and have a big colony, it would be super interesting to see different species workers living alongside each other.

[NickAnter]

Those strumigenys don't appear to be louisianae.