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Digging or capturing wild colonies


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27 replies to this topic

#1 Offline Acutus - Posted April 25 2019 - 2:44 PM

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I promise I'm not trolling or trying to stir the pot. I would just like to hear the reasons people may or may not do this.

 

In my case I have a captured colony that I found in an old tree cookie. however in the course of my job in taking care of a camp property I almost all the time am removing debris or moving things and seeing/disturbing colonies. Termites too! It's just now I know more bout ants.

I figured it was better in this instance to capture the colony and use it for education than to destroy it.

 

To demonstrate how often this happens, just yesterday I went to pick up a 1" x 4" x 24" board that was laying next to the camp driveway and found a Camponotus castaneus colony I put the board back but it really can't stay there and I went to move a damn traffic cone and found another Camponotus chromaiodes colony. Again eventually I have to move the cone (I don't want another chromaiodes colony anyhow) this doesn't count all the smaller ants that I have no idea what they are and termites too!

 

I personally wouldn't go looking for a colony just to remove it.

 

Surely in instances like these it's better to collect it than destroy it? Just some thoughts. Lets keep it civil


Billy

 

Currently keeping:

Camponotus chromaiodes

Camponotus castaneus

Formica subsericea


#2 Offline TennesseeAnts - Posted April 25 2019 - 3:12 PM

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I say as long as you are prepared to collect the majority of the colony, and you don't over collect, you are fine. I would keep the castaneus colony though.


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#3 Offline Somethinghmm - Posted April 25 2019 - 4:37 PM

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In my opinion, it's fine to collect a few small colonies. I'm against collecting mature colonies though.


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#4 Offline Ferox_Formicae - Posted April 25 2019 - 4:40 PM

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I'm thinking of capturing a large colony of Camponotus chromaiodes. I've been after this colony for over a year now, no joke! At this point, I'm prepared to just grab the whole leg and take it home with me. Maybe put it in the freezer for a bit to chill the ants before I collect them. Is this a good idea?


Currently Keeping:

 

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

 

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#5 Offline TennesseeAnts - Posted April 25 2019 - 5:08 PM

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The refrigerator is a good idea.

#6 Offline Manitobant - Posted April 25 2019 - 5:55 PM

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when I capture wild colonies I usually stick to some personal ethics. Here are the types of colonies that I do go after:

Small first year colonies (few workers and not a lot of digging required)

Colonies under rocks (only if the queen is under the rock as well and not inside the nest. I don’t dig these colonies.)

Myrmica colonies (very shallow diggers that are polygynous and easy to capture)

Colonies in logs or stumps (you can easily break it open to find the queen or take the log/stump home and put it in a bin to continue its use as the colony nest)

Budding colonies (the queen and her workers just walk by for easy capture)

Edited by Manitobant, April 25 2019 - 5:55 PM.

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#7 Offline Ferox_Formicae - Posted April 25 2019 - 6:19 PM

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when I capture wild colonies I usually stick to some personal ethics. Here are the types of colonies that I do go after:

Small first year colonies (few workers and not a lot of digging required)

Colonies under rocks (only if the queen is under the rock as well and not inside the nest. I don’t dig these colonies.)

Myrmica colonies (very shallow diggers that are polygynous and easy to capture)

Colonies in logs or stumps (you can easily break it open to find the queen or take the log/stump home and put it in a bin to continue its use as the colony nest)

Budding colonies (the queen and her workers just walk by for easy capture)

I would also add colonies in hollow twigs or nuts to this list as those colonies are supper easy to collect. And the Camponotus chromaiodes colony would count under the log section as they are nested inside of a log last time I checked, unless they moved out between now and last Sunday...


Currently Keeping:

 

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

 

All Strumigenys Journal

Shop

 

YouTube

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#8 Offline Acutus - Posted April 25 2019 - 6:51 PM

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when I capture wild colonies I usually stick to some personal ethics. Here are the types of colonies that I do go after:

Small first year colonies (few workers and not a lot of digging required)

Colonies under rocks (only if the queen is under the rock as well and not inside the nest. I don’t dig these colonies.)

Myrmica colonies (very shallow diggers that are polygynous and easy to capture)

Colonies in logs or stumps (you can easily break it open to find the queen or take the log/stump home and put it in a bin to continue its use as the colony nest)

Budding colonies (the queen and her workers just walk by for easy capture)

I would also add colonies in hollow twigs or nuts to this list as those colonies are supper easy to collect. And the Camponotus chromaiodes colony would count under the log section as they are nested inside of a log last time I checked, unless they moved out between now and last Sunday...

 

 

the colony I got was totally in a 12" x 15" x 3" section of a big tree cookie that had been on the ground for about 12 years. :)


Billy

 

Currently keeping:

Camponotus chromaiodes

Camponotus castaneus

Formica subsericea


#9 Offline Leo - Posted April 25 2019 - 7:08 PM

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Well some species are impossible to get from nuptial flights (leptogenys), and finding a nest that is in a spot where you can catch 98% of the colony is hard. Mostly you know where the colony is nesting but you can't catch it because:

a) Can't be reached

B) In a spot where it is hard to collect the entire colony (you'll probably miss the queen and some workers)

c) Its in a hole underground

d) You don't have the right equipment

In those cases, I leave them alone.

Recently I found a leptogenys colony living in a small log, and I had a large garbage bag, so I just placed the entire log into the bag. I tend not to collect ground nesting species, because it will often end in failure and a ruined nest. Log nesting species are ok to collect as long as you know that you can capture the entire colony and not ruin the whole log in the process. Twig nesting species are fine by me, and mature weavers are a big no no.



#10 Offline ANTdrew - Posted April 26 2019 - 6:09 AM

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My own personal stance is to not collect wild colonies unless it is a rescue situation like you described. For me, the fun of ant keeping is finding new queens and witnessing the whole cycle of the ant colony from the very beginning. This is more sustainable, too, because colonies send out way more queens than will ever survive. Just my two cents.


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"The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer." Prov. 30:25
Keep ordinary ants in extraordinary ways.

#11 Offline TennesseeAnts - Posted April 26 2019 - 6:29 AM

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Collecting founding queens is fine too.

#12 Offline Guy_Fieri - Posted April 26 2019 - 9:09 PM

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I'll only take colonies that have about 20 or less workers, but I'm not against collecting wild colonies as long as you don't do it too often.



#13 Offline kingz2015 - Posted May 7 2019 - 5:48 PM

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In my opinion, it's fine to collect a few small colonies. I'm against collecting mature colonies though.


I agree. I don't collect colonies with more than 20 workers

Edited by kingz2015, May 7 2019 - 5:49 PM.

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#14 Offline TennesseeAnts - Posted May 7 2019 - 5:57 PM

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In my opinion, it's fine to collect a few small colonies. I'm against collecting mature colonies though.


I agree. I don't collect colonies with more than 20 workers

I usually don't either. But if it is my dream species, like Trachymyrmex, I can't help myself. :lol:
Anyone know where Stigmatomma pallipes colonies nest? I need some larvae for my queen.

#15 Offline ponerinecat - Posted May 9 2019 - 4:50 PM

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look under flat (ish?) rocks, maybe near other ants.



#16 Offline Mdrogun - Posted May 10 2019 - 1:27 AM

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usually refrain from collecting wild colonies of native ants. Introduced species are at least killed by me, sometimes collected. There are times where I will make exceptions. Occasionally i will drive somewhere hoping to catch nuptial flights of a species, or something like that, and if I run into a small colony of what I was looking for I'll take them.


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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 TennesseeAnts - Posted May 10 2019 - 7:12 AM

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usually refrain from collecting wild colonies of native ants. Introduced species are at least killed by me, sometimes collected. There are times where I will make exceptions. Occasionally i will drive somewhere hoping to catch nuptial flights of a species, or something like that, and if I run into a small colony of what I was looking for I'll take them.


I was hoping for Nylanderia flights yesterday, but found a medium sized colony instead.
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#18 Offline Acutus - Posted May 10 2019 - 1:08 PM

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Like I said most of the colonies I have at least tried to collect were gonna get destroyed regardless. 


Billy

 

Currently keeping:

Camponotus chromaiodes

Camponotus castaneus

Formica subsericea


#19 Offline ponerinecat - Posted May 12 2019 - 4:49 PM

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Like I said most of the colonies I have at least tried to collect were gonna get destroyed regardless. 

Then that's fine


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#20 Offline NickAnter - Posted May 20 2019 - 3:05 PM

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I think it is fine, but I personally don't do it, as I think the most fun part is getting nanitics, and watching the colony grow from single queen, to large colony.
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Hi there! I went on a 6 month or so hiatus, in part due, and in part cause of the death of my colonies. 

However, I went back to the Sierras, and restarted my collection, which is now as follows:

Aphaenogaster uinta, Camponotus vicinus, Camponotus modoc, Formica cf. aserva, Formica cf. micropthalma, Formica cf. manni, Formica subpolita, Formica cf. subaenescens, Lasius americanus, Manica invidia, Pogonomyrmex salinus, Pogonomyrmex sp. 1, Solenopsis validiuscula, & Solenopsis sp. 3 (new Sierra variant). 





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