625 replies to this topic

[ANTdrew]

Sorry, but raising them alone won’t work once they are used to having workers.

[CatsnAnts]

Well, I guess it doesn’t hurt to try at this point!

[ANTdrew]

I would try to find her workers or return her to the colony.

[CatsnAnts]

I would try to find her workers or return her to the colony.

Of the about 5 workers, I don’t think I will be able to find them again because they scattered away. I feel like if I release her, she will wander off and not find her colony, but I will still try to find them! (On a bright note, all three Camponotus subbarbatus queens are doing good!)

[CatsnAnts]

Okay! So I just posted a thread on antscanada on keeping established queens (I keep my journals here and usually ask questions there), and raising them with no workers like my Camponotus nearcticus queen! Many people replied, and all of them stated that it was perfectly fine to raise them from the start again with no workers, in fact, many people even have done it and shared how To do it! They said that the queens don’t just “forget” how to lay eggs and take care of them, but I will have to feed her every now and then!

Edited by CatsnAnts, May 16 2019 - 11:54 AM.

[Acutus]

Okay! So I just posted a thread on antscanada on keeping established queens (I keep my journals here and usually ask questions there), and raising them with no workers like my Camponotus nearcticus queen! Many people replied, and all of them stated that it was perfectly fine to raise them from the start again with no workers, in fact, many people even have done it and shared how To do it! They said that the queens don’t just “forget” how to lay eggs and take care of them, but I will have to feed her every now and then!

 

I would say it depends on how far along the colony was. I had a C. castaneus Queen last year that had about 9 workers. I wasn't really expecting to find her and all the workers got away except 1 and I ended up with the queen and that one worker. The worker died shortly after and the Queen never laid.

My concern would be that (and I didn't know this then) you will have to be the worker. You will need to provide food for her as she doesn't have the reserves she had after her nuptial flight. If you do that you have a chance of getting her to raise more workers.

Good Luck!

[CatsnAnts]

Okay! So I just posted a thread on antscanada on keeping established queens (I keep my journals here and usually ask questions there), and raising them with no workers like my Camponotus nearcticus queen! Many people replied, and all of them stated that it was perfectly fine to raise them from the start again with no workers, in fact, many people even have done it and shared how To do it! They said that the queens don’t just “forget” how to lay eggs and take care of them, but I will have to feed her every now and then!

I would say it depends on how far along the colony was. I had a C. castaneus Queen last year that had about 9 workers. I wasn't really expecting to find her and all the workers got away except 1 and I ended up with the queen and that one worker. The worker died shortly after and the Queen never laid.
My concern would be that (and I didn't know this then) you will have to be the worker. You will need to provide food for her as she doesn't have the reserves she had after her nuptial flight. If you do that you have a chance of getting her to raise more workers.
Good Luck!

Will do! Thxs for sharing!

Edit: I just put a fly in her test tube and resisted the urge to pick up the other three queens, although from what I could see, they were doing well. The Camponotus nearcticus (the one I fed) seemed a little tense though.

Edited by CatsnAnts, May 16 2019 - 12:51 PM.

[CatsnAnts]

Alright, so I just checked up on all four of my queens, and I am going to label them now in accordance to when they were caught:

Camponotus subbarbatus #1:
Yay! She has an egg!! And she’s tending to it very closely.

Camponotus subbarbatus #2:
She’s got two eggs!! And she too is tending to them closely.

Camponotus subbarbatus #3:
No eggs yet, but is very calm.

Camponotus nearcticus #1:
Ate a tiny bit of the fly, and her gaster expanded, but no eggs yet. She has also calmed down a LOT.

[CatsnAnts]

Dang! I really suck at not checking on my ants! But I caught a fly and gave it to my Camponotus subbarbatus queen #3. When I went and checked on them, all three Camponotus queens had eggs, numbers 1 and 3 both had one, and number 2 has three eggs. My Camponotus nearcticus queen though has what appears to be 15 dried out eggs all perfectly lined up with one another, but I really don’t think that’s possible since she didn't have any eggs yesterday. I will get a picture sometime later.

[CatsnAnts]

Okay, so I have been checking on them everyday, but it is always in a very dark location where the only light is a small window (with me blocking most of the light). The three Camponotus s. queens all still have eggs. They all (in order from 1 to 3) have 2 eggs, 3 eggs, and 1 egg. My Camponotus nearcticus has begun chewing on the cotton.

[CatsnAnts]

Another update! So some of you may have noticed my recent comments/threads about temnothorax. I’ve always wanted a colony of them, and I think I am very close to getting one, as tonight is the first night I have seen workers (they are super tiny)! I checked tiny sticks with no luck (although I didn’t really know what I was looking for), so then I moved onto larger sticks. In the first was a founding Camponotus subbarbatus queen! So that brings my total up to 4! I also decided to release the Camponotus nearcticus since she wasn’t calming down nor laying eggs. Back to the sticks, there was a large variety of life including crematogaster, lasius, tetramorium, Camponotus, aphenogaster, and of course: temnothorax! I saw a worker for the first time! Tomorrow, I am going to go back and collect a bunch of small sticks and check for a colony of temnothorax!

[TennesseeAnts]

Persistence pays of!

[CatsnAnts]

Another update for today! So I collected A BUNCH of walnuts (no acorns), as well as crack open two more sticks. Within the two sticks were TWO MORE Camponotus subbarbatus queens. That brings my total up to 6. I think I might put all three of the newest queens together even though I know they are strictly monogous (although they perform plemetriosis). THEN, inside of one of the walnuts was a small aphenogaster colony, they are mainly red and blackish, but on the tip of their gaster is a yellow color. The colony was found in the smallest walnut, and contains a queen. It has about 20 workers and some brood. I lost some of the workers because I wasn’t expecting to find a colony! Anyways, what are your thoughts:

1: should I put three Camponotus subbarbatus queens together? I only have five test tubes.

2: should I keep the aphenogaster colony?

[TennesseeAnts]

#1
#2

[CatsnAnts]

WELL THEN, I found a nice surprise on queen number 4! I looked into her test tube to see her gaster broke open. Nothing happened at first, but then all of these white parasites started crawling out, eew...



Edit: literally over twenty of those things crawled out, no wonder her gaster looked so large.

Edited by CatsnAnts, May 21 2019 - 4:37 PM.

[CatsnAnts]

And here I moved the acorn into a temporary housing space with damp cotton on the ground. Not a worker or piece of brood of lost (mainly because they are all in the acorn).


Also! I totally forgot about my termites, and was actually going to get rid of them tonight because I though they weren’t laying eggs. Low and behold, they have a pile of 8 eggs!

EDIT: I have just started a journal on the termites in the “termite keeping journals” section, but I will still have regular updates on them here as well, just not as detailed.

Edited by CatsnAnts, May 21 2019 - 6:04 PM.

[Acutus]

 as well as crack open two more sticks. Within the two sticks were TWO MORE Camponotus subbarbatus queens. That brings my total up to 6. 

 

Really? I specifically spent at least an hour cracking open branches to try and find Queens and I can't find anything. I find colonies of ants all the time (most small that I'm not interested in, I also found another Huge C. chromaiodes Colony today in another tree cookie but I left it alone. I just want queens!!

And apparently we do have C. subarbatus here too they look cool.

 

Next time you pick out some sticks to crack open can you video it so I can see what your picking up?

 

 

OH and #3 from above, Buy more Test tubes! LOL! The way you find Queens you're gonna need'em.

Edited by Acutus, May 21 2019 - 7:14 PM.

[CatsnAnts]

as well as crack open two more sticks. Within the two sticks were TWO MORE Camponotus subbarbatus queens. That brings my total up to 6.

Really? I specifically spent at least an hour cracking open branches to try and find Queens and I can't find anything. I find colonies of ants all the time (most small that I'm not interested in, I also found another Huge C. chromaiodes Colony today in another tree cookie but I left it alone. I just want queens!!
And apparently we do have C. subarbatus here too they look cool.

Next time you pick out some sticks to crack open can you video it so I can see what your picking up?


OH and #3 from above, Buy more Test tubes! LOL! The way you find Queens you're gonna need'em.

Ya, I do need more test tubes! Now for the sticks! I’d love to show you how I do my process and where I hunt! This week is finals week (I’m a freshman) and I have some of my hardest ones tomorrow, so I may wait until the weekend, but I won’t forget! For me, this is really my first year in ant keeping where I have ever cracked open sticks or even looked in acorns (I’ve been doing it for 4 yrs)! And all I seem to find are Camponotus subbarbatus queens! I’ve never even seen a Camponotus pensylvanivus queen here before! But the main thing is to find an undisturbed area, like the edge of a woods, and collect all of the partially rotten sticks! I promise I will take pictures and explain it better soon!

[Acutus]

 

 

as well as crack open two more sticks. Within the two sticks were TWO MORE Camponotus subbarbatus queens. That brings my total up to 6.

Really? I specifically spent at least an hour cracking open branches to try and find Queens and I can't find anything. I find colonies of ants all the time (most small that I'm not interested in, I also found another Huge C. chromaiodes Colony today in another tree cookie but I left it alone. I just want queens!!
And apparently we do have C. subarbatus here too they look cool.

Next time you pick out some sticks to crack open can you video it so I can see what your picking up?


OH and #3 from above, Buy more Test tubes! LOL! The way you find Queens you're gonna need'em.

Ya, I do need more test tubes! Now for the sticks! I’d love to show you how I do my process and where I hunt! This week is finals week (I’m a freshman) and I have some of my hardest ones tomorrow, so I may wait until the weekend, but I won’t forget! For me, this is really my first year in ant keeping where I have ever cracked open sticks or even looked in acorns (I’ve been doing it for 4 yrs)! And all I seem to find are Camponotus subbarbatus queens! I’ve never even seen a Camponotus pensylvanivus queen here before! But the main thing is to find an undisturbed area, like the edge of a woods, and collect all of the partially rotten sticks! I promise I will take pictures and explain it better soon!

 

 

I would appreciate that. This is my first year too and I have only found 1 single queen. I have found colonies with queens but I really would like to start one from a Queen only or Queen and few workers. Camponotus subbarbatus would be fine with me 

[CatsnAnts]

Yes, it is so much more rewarding to start from a single queen! Also, my black light is arriving today, so I might test out a few things with that!