Hello Ant Wizards,
I'd feel lucky if I could get some ballpark guesses on at least the species of these, they're incredibly small and I don't have the equipment necessary to take photos in a useful resolution.
I caught this queen digging her nuptial chamber in the water drain path of the road in my neighborhood. The queen reminds me of solenopsis invicta queens but about 25% smaller. The workers are all uniform in size. The colony isn't very conservative with its workers either. I've seen it send as many as 8 of 12 workers away from the queen and eggs.
Thank you for your time,
Kalen
1. Location (on a map) of collection: Sharpsburg, Georgia Zip: 30277
2. Date of collection: Late May / Early June
3. Habitat of collection: Southside Atlanta suburbs are carved out of forest.
4. Length (from head to gaster): Queen 5-6mm | Workers 1-2mm https://imgur.com/gdOASnQ
5. Color, hue, pattern and texture: The queen is lighter with a reddish color and some stripes on her gaster. The workers appear to be darker in my opinion
6. Distinguishing characteristics: The worker's heads seem to be the largest part of the body.
7. Distinguishing behavior: NA
