1 reply to this topic

[SelfDeludedFool]

I'll just start by saying I have extensively read through the sticky here on temporary social parasites and am familiar with the popular methods of founding, I've also done an extensive amount of research on this particular species and their colony founding practices.

I have two Formica obscuripes queens, recently caught today. I had found yet another a couple of weeks ago that has since passed, the day after I'd gotten pupae to her, in fact. It was a week after capture. I'd provided ample honey, even a bit of protein, in a standard test tube setup. I'm uncertain as to why she didn't make it but I thought perhaps the stress of adding the pupae or maybe I simply wasn't fast enough getting them to her.

Anyway, that brings me to the reason for this post. I'm looking for advice on how to proceed. I've read that Formica social parasites are capable of helping pupae eclose and therefore don't require the added risk of enslaving workers of a foreign colony.

Today after successfully catching these queens I made sure to locate an established nest and got lucky enough to find a fair amount of pupae among the workers not half an inch deep; Amongst the pine needles they were using to build up their mound. I collected what I could and ended up with about 30 workers and 20-25 Pupae.

Given what I know about this species and what I've read about parasitic Formica I gave each queen six of the Pupae.

So, the questions are, does anyone have experience with this particular species, even just a Formica social parasite? If and when should I attempt to add workers? Will the queen be able to make it long enough for the workers to eclose without being fed? (She does have access to honey now)

I'm at a bit of a loss here, any suggestions would be appreciated.

Edited by SelfDeludedFool, June 26 2018 - 6:26 AM.

[AntsBC]

I'll just start by saying I have extensively read through the sticky here on temporary social parasites and am familiar with the popular methods of founding, I've also done an extensive amount of research on this particular species and their colony founding practices.

I have two Formica obscuripes queens, recently caught today. I had found yet another a couple of weeks ago that has since passed, the day after I'd gotten pupae to her, in fact. It was a week after capture. I'd provided ample honey, even a bit of protein, in a standard test tube setup. I'm uncertain as to why she didn't make it but I thought perhaps the stress of adding the pupae or maybe I simply wasn't fast enough getting them to her.

Anyway, that brings me to the reason for this post. I'm looking for advice on how to proceed. I've read that Formica social parasites are capable of helping pupae eclose and therefore don't require the added risk of enslaving workers of a foreign colony.

Today after successfully catching these queens I made sure to locate an established nest and got lucky enough to find a fair amount of pupae among the workers not half an inch deep; Amongst the pine needles they were using to build up their mound. I collected what I could and ended up with about 30 workers and 20-25 Pupae.

Given what I know about this species and what I've read about parasitic Formica I gave each queen six of the Pupae.

So, the questions are, does anyone have experience with this particular species, even just a Formica social parasite? If and when should I attempt to add workers? Will the queen be able to make it long enough for the workers to eclose without being fed? (She does have access to honey now)

I'm at a bit of a loss here, any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

Some parasitic Formica queens lack the ability to open cocoons. If this is happening to you I would suggest doing what I did. My queen wouldn't open pupae so I snagged a few workers from a nearby nest along with some brood. I fed this unit of workers and brood and eventually they started to open some of the cocoons. As soon as a worker eclosed I took her out of the container I was keeping the unit in and gave it to my parasite along with some brood and other newly eclosed workers. Newly eclosed workers don't fully obtain the colonies scent yet so that is why you should use them when giving workers to parasites. In my case the queen accepted the workers and pupae, and the newly founded colony already has been opening some of the pupae. This doesn't always end in a happy ending but it is your best bet if your queen isn't opening the cocoons you have already offered her. Hope that helps you. 

Edited by AntsBC, August 2 2018 - 9:30 AM.