7 replies to this topic

[JFowler]

 

 

I caught these worker ants in a rural area outside of Statesboro, Georgia.

They were under a few blocks of wood on the porch of a house no one has lived in for years.

I haven't measured them, but these workers are longer than my keyboard keys are wide. They're huge compared the the Trachymyrmex septentrionalis I caught yesterday.

They have dark red heads, orange/yellow thoraxes, and dark (almost black) abdomens. Their bodies are covered in long hairs. The halves of their antennae that are closer to their heads are very thick compared to the outer ends. Their heads are shaped like corn kernels, and they have fairly large jaws.

They moved very quickly once I disturbed their nest. The wood had obviously been chewed into; I'm guessing these are carpenter ants of some sort.

 

I didn't take a picture of the wood I found them under.

The freezer in one of the pictures was where I found a Solenopsis invicta queen; there was a large nest of fire ants living in and directly under the lid of the freezer. The main storage bin of the freezer was loaded with gigantic maggots.

[Canadian anter]

I'm guEssington Camponotus not us floridanish or a similar sp

[Salmon]

I'm guessing the maggots are some kind of soldier fly, do you have any better pictures of them? How big are they exactly?  

[MrILoveTheAnts]

They look like Camponotus floridanus.

[Canadian anter]

Oh god I just realized how much my autocorecruiter did
*autocorrecI promise I wasn't drunk.I'm still 12

Edited by Canadian anter, September 28 2016 - 5:56 PM.

[JFowler]

Camponotus floridanus seems to be what these ants are; they match the pictures I'm viewing perfectly. I wish I had managed to find/catch their queen; I like how large and active they appeared to be.

The maggots were probably about two inches long, varying in color from dull gray to a very dirty off-white. They probably were soldier fly larvae. They/their food smelled absolutely awful.

[drtrmiller]

The maggots were probably about two inches long, varying in color from dull gray to a very dirty off-white. They probably were soldier fly larvae. They/their food smelled absolutely awful.

 

If the food had a terrible, pungent odor, it was likely highly anaerobic from being in that closed bin.  From what I understand, houseflies and bottle flies are largely attracted to anaerobic environments and highly rotten foods, whereas soldier flies usually reproduce in open, aerobic environments that don't smell as bad.  You can identify the maggots based on how they move/wiggle, as well.

[dspdrew]

Try to keep posts coherent.