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Is my Camponotus cruentatus queen happy?


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#1 Offline Rozema - Posted September 12 2018 - 6:30 AM

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So, last week I recieved my Camponotus cruentatus queen. She was in the mail for over a week, so I understood she was a but pissed. She almoct removed the cotton ball that sealed the tube. 

 

After a day I noticed she still attacked the cotton ball very fiercely. I know she is claustral but read a lot about feeding a small portion to calm her down. Because she is to wild to handle, I decided to connect her tube to a small feeding box of aprox 3 inch. She did not eat, but what she did, was hide in the black test tube connector. Because she did not eat the honeydew or fruitfly that I gave, I decided to give her rest en disconnected the feeding box and put a cotton ball back in the tube. 

 

But when I did this she went ballistic. She started to attack the cotton ball by biting it and stinging it with her gaster. When I looked in the connector I could see some small white stuff. I think it was cotton wool she puled loose earlier, but thought what if it are eggs? So in panic I connected the feeding box again and she calmed down. 

 

I decided to place her in a dark warm closet, but I still have the feeding box connected? Is this a problem? I read a lot about how they like small spaces, but she has the penthouse suite right now. When I did look after a couple of days, she was still sitting in the test tube connector. 



#2 Offline YsTheAnt - Posted September 13 2018 - 5:19 PM

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The best thing you can do is leave her setup be and give her some protein and sugar close to where she nests. Leave her alone in a dark closet at around 80-85 degrees Fahrenheit and don't peek for two weeks.

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#3 Offline Rozema - Posted September 13 2018 - 10:35 PM

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Thanks! That is what I will do!



#4 Offline Serafine - Posted September 13 2018 - 11:08 PM

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Having a foraging box attached is no problem. It's possible that she didn't like the high humidity (closed test tubes are at around 95%, Camponotus cruentatus may prefer kinda dry nests) or that she doesn't really trust the nest due to the transport stress. The cotton she pulled of is probably either her toilet area or some type of comfy place for the eggs/larvae (my Camponotus barbaricus did the same). I think this species is mostly nocturnal so it would be best to completely darken the test tube (you can put a piece of dark/red-colored paper around it, that should do).


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