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What ant species did you get completely wrong as a beginner?


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#1 Offline Manitobant - Posted April 21 2019 - 12:10 PM

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Hello guys, I decided to make this thread so we can discuss what ant species we horribly misidentified as beginners.

I will start: when I was a beginner I completely misidentified lasius brevicornis as monomorium pharaonis.

Edited by Manitobant, April 21 2019 - 12:11 PM.

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#2 Offline Mettcollsuss - Posted April 21 2019 - 1:28 PM

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1) For a few minutes I thought a Lasius americanus queen I caught was some species of Pheidole

 

2) Accidentally disturbed a Tapinoma sessile colony. Saw them rushing around and thought they were Lasius alienus (now L. americanus). Even once I saw a queen running around, it didn't occur to me. I just thought, "huh, L. alienus have smaller queens than other Lasius I've seen."

 

3) I thought my Aphaenogaster rudis queen was Tetramorium tsushimae. At that point, I had heard of T. tsushimae, but had never seen them, didn't know what they looked like, or where they lived. I just saw a strange myrmicine ant I had never seen before, figured that since it was flying around Tetramorium season (she was an early flyer), and was roughly Tetramorium sized, it must be this one random species I knew nothing about.

 

4) Not exactly a species ID mess up, but similar. I lifted a rock and found what I now recognize to be a parasitic Lasius colony's alate pupae chamber. I didn't realize they were alate cocoons at the time, and thought, "those are way too big to be Lasius pupae." I noticed that they were similarly sized to Camponotus worker pupae, and assumed that's what they were. I came to the conclusion that a Lasius colony had attacked a Camponotus colony, had won, and were now invading the brood room. It also didn't occur to me that Camponotus don't (usually) nest in soil.

 

5) I picked up a worker from a trail of what I thought were Crematogaster. They were not. Guess how I figured out what fire ant stings feel like?


Edited by Mettcollsuss, April 21 2019 - 1:28 PM.

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#3 Offline FeedTheAnts - Posted April 21 2019 - 1:45 PM

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I never saw Tetramorium back when I lived in TN because they happened to be rare in my locality. This coupled with the fact that I knew they were a common genus led me to beleive that almost everything was Tetramorium becuase it "just had to be". Nowadays I find them occasionally but always think they are Myrmica. Tetramorium will just never be my genus.


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I accidentally froze all my ants 


#4 Offline TennesseeAnts - Posted April 21 2019 - 2:04 PM

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I misidentified a Myrmica incompleta colony as Lasius claviger.... Don't judge... :lol:
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#5 Offline FSTP - Posted April 21 2019 - 9:20 PM

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Dorymryrmex, mistaking bicolor queens for insanus queens and vis versa 


Edited by FSTP, April 21 2019 - 9:23 PM.

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#6 Offline Guy_Fieri - Posted April 21 2019 - 9:55 PM

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I made the classic mistake of confusing Pogonomyrmex with Solenopsis the first time I saw them.


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#7 Offline Enderz - Posted April 22 2019 - 12:36 AM

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On my first trip to Chaney I had never seen a Camponotus sp. in person, and I quickly spotted what I thought to be one. Turns out it was Liometopum occidentalis, a species I had never even seen a picture of. Best time ever.


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Ex igne et in infernum. 


#8 Offline drtrmiller - Posted April 22 2019 - 12:59 AM

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When I was 6, I thought bulldog ants and carpenter ants were the same thing.

 

It wasn't until I picked up the National Audubon Society Field Guide to Insects & Spiders, maybe sometime around 2nd grade, that I started learning the proper scientific names of some insects.


Edited by drtrmiller, April 22 2019 - 1:03 AM.

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#9 Offline Martialis - Posted April 22 2019 - 6:38 AM

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When I was 6, I thought bulldog ants and carpenter ants were the same thing.

It wasn't until I picked up the National Audubon Society Field Guide to Insects & Spiders, maybe sometime around 2nd grade, that I started learning the proper scientific names of some insects.


I have that book! It’s hwey nice, even though it can be slightly inaccurate in some areas.

I used to confuse Pheidole with Solenopsis.
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Spoiler

#10 Offline TennesseeAnts - Posted April 22 2019 - 7:39 AM

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When I was 6, I thought bulldog ants and carpenter ants were the same thing.
It wasn't until I picked up the National Audubon Society Field Guide to Insects & Spiders, maybe sometime around 2nd grade, that I started learning the proper scientific names of some insects.


I have that book! It’s hwey nice, even though it can be slightly inaccurate in some areas.
I used to confuse Pheidole with Solenopsis.

Well Pheidole and Solenopsis workers are pretty similar. Queens are way different though.
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#11 Offline ANTdrew - Posted April 22 2019 - 8:06 AM

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I just realized that what I thought were Camponotus novaeboracencis were actually C. chromaiodes all along.


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#12 Offline AntsDanijel - Posted April 22 2019 - 12:21 PM

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Hahaha. I found lasius niger under a rock and collect workers, put in a jar and I have a formicarium. Then I reed a lot about ants and then after a week, I realized I don't have a queen. The beginning is just funny.
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#13 Offline Kaelwizard - Posted April 22 2019 - 2:53 PM

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oh, I see. I thought my F. subsericea were C. pennsylvanica. Pretty dumb. But wait, that's not all! I thought Tetramorium immigrans were Temnothorax longispinosus lol


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#14 Offline TennesseeAnts - Posted April 22 2019 - 3:08 PM

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I thought my T. longispinosus were T. immagrans.

Edited by Ant_Dude2908, April 22 2019 - 3:08 PM.

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#15 Offline TennesseeAnts - Posted April 22 2019 - 3:12 PM

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1) For a few minutes I thought a Lasius americanus queen I caught was some species of Pheidole
 
2) Accidentally disturbed a Tapinoma sessile colony. Saw them rushing around and thought they were Lasius alienus (now L. americanus). Even once I saw a queen running around, it didn't occur to me. I just thought, "huh, L. alienus have smaller queens than other Lasius I've seen."
 
3) I thought my Aphaenogaster rudis queen was Tetramorium tsushimae. At that point, I had heard of T. tsushimae, but had never seen them, didn't know what they looked like, or where they lived. I just saw a strange myrmicine ant I had never seen before, figured that since it was flying around Tetramorium season (she was an early flyer), and was roughly Tetramorium sized, it must be this one random species I knew nothing about.
 
4) Not exactly a species ID mess up, but similar. I lifted a rock and found what I now recognize to be a parasitic Lasius colony's alate pupae chamber. I didn't realize they were alate cocoons at the time, and thought, "those are way too big to be Lasius pupae." I noticed that they were similarly sized to Camponotus worker pupae, and assumed that's what they were. I came to the conclusion that a Lasius colony had attacked a Camponotus colony, had won, and were now invading the brood room. It also didn't occur to me that Camponotus don't (usually) nest in soil.
 
5) I picked up a worker from a trail of what I thought were Crematogaster. They were not. Guess how I figured out what fire ant stings feel like?


I found out what their stings feel like when I stuck my hand in a mound....:lol:
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#16 Offline Mdrogun - Posted April 22 2019 - 3:23 PM

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1) For a few minutes I thought a Lasius americanus queen I caught was some species of Pheidole

 

2) Accidentally disturbed a Tapinoma sessile colony. Saw them rushing around and thought they were Lasius alienus (now L. americanus). Even once I saw a queen running around, it didn't occur to me. I just thought, "huh, L. alienus have smaller queens than other Lasius I've seen."

 

3) I thought my Aphaenogaster rudis queen was Tetramorium tsushimae. At that point, I had heard of T. tsushimae, but had never seen them, didn't know what they looked like, or where they lived. I just saw a strange myrmicine ant I had never seen before, figured that since it was flying around Tetramorium season (she was an early flyer), and was roughly Tetramorium sized, it must be this one random species I knew nothing about.

 

4) Not exactly a species ID mess up, but similar. I lifted a rock and found what I now recognize to be a parasitic Lasius colony's alate pupae chamber. I didn't realize they were alate cocoons at the time, and thought, "those are way too big to be Lasius pupae." I noticed that they were similarly sized to Camponotus worker pupae, and assumed that's what they were. I came to the conclusion that a Lasius colony had attacked a Camponotus colony, had won, and were now invading the brood room. It also didn't occur to me that Camponotus don't (usually) nest in soil.

 

5) I picked up a worker from a trail of what I thought were Crematogaster. They were not. Guess how I figured out what fire ant stings feel like?

Fire ants up in Chicago? You sure about that lol


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Currently Keeping:
Trachymyrmex septentrionalis

Pheidole pilifera

Forelius sp. (Monogynous, bicolored) "Midwestern Forelius"
Crematogaster cerasi

Pheidole bicarinata

Aphaenogaster rudis

Camponotus chromaiodes

Formica sp. (microgena species)

Nylanderia cf. arenivega


#17 Offline Mettcollsuss - Posted April 22 2019 - 4:19 PM

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1) For a few minutes I thought a Lasius americanus queen I caught was some species of Pheidole

 

2) Accidentally disturbed a Tapinoma sessile colony. Saw them rushing around and thought they were Lasius alienus (now L. americanus). Even once I saw a queen running around, it didn't occur to me. I just thought, "huh, L. alienus have smaller queens than other Lasius I've seen."

 

3) I thought my Aphaenogaster rudis queen was Tetramorium tsushimae. At that point, I had heard of T. tsushimae, but had never seen them, didn't know what they looked like, or where they lived. I just saw a strange myrmicine ant I had never seen before, figured that since it was flying around Tetramorium season (she was an early flyer), and was roughly Tetramorium sized, it must be this one random species I knew nothing about.

 

4) Not exactly a species ID mess up, but similar. I lifted a rock and found what I now recognize to be a parasitic Lasius colony's alate pupae chamber. I didn't realize they were alate cocoons at the time, and thought, "those are way too big to be Lasius pupae." I noticed that they were similarly sized to Camponotus worker pupae, and assumed that's what they were. I came to the conclusion that a Lasius colony had attacked a Camponotus colony, had won, and were now invading the brood room. It also didn't occur to me that Camponotus don't (usually) nest in soil.

 

5) I picked up a worker from a trail of what I thought were Crematogaster. They were not. Guess how I figured out what fire ant stings feel like?

Fire ants up in Chicago? You sure about that lol

 

I was in North Carolina visiting family


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#18 Offline Ferox_Formicae - Posted April 23 2019 - 5:32 AM

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I once thought a Crematogaster lineolata worker was a Solenopsis invicta queen. I was still very new to the hobby at that time. Before I got into the hobby, I thought that large Camponotus workers were Myrmecia. Everyone I knew called them Bulldog Ants, and told me their stings were really, really "painful" and "they're really aggressive." It wasn't until I found a whole bunch of Camponotus pennsylvanicus on a tree and started collecting them and I put them on iNaturalist that I realized they were pretty much harmless. But then I went to Hilton Head Island a few weeks ago and caught Camponotus floridanus for the first time. Those are aggressive! I also once falsely identified Pachycondyla harpax as Camponotus pennsylvanicus. I got a really bad sting that day. I also identified Cyphomyrmex rimosus as Cephalotes texanus for a few minutes.


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Camponotus chromaiodes, Camponotus nearcticus, Stigmatomma pallipesStrumigenys brevisetosaStrumigenys clypeataStrumigenys louisianaeStrumigenys membraniferaStrumigenys reflexaStrumigenys rostrata

 

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#19 Offline ponerinecat - Posted April 23 2019 - 9:02 PM

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I thought solenopsis molesta were temnothorax just because they were small. I also used to think any large ant was a queen, so i collected tons of formica and camponotus workers. My friend thought monomorium were sugar ants, and I assumed all small ants were polygyne.


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#20 Offline Jadeninja9 - Posted April 23 2019 - 10:38 PM

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Before I had ever caught a single queen I misidentified a Jerusalem cricket as a Lasius Queen LOL
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