105 replies to this topic

[Reevak]

 

 

I've never seen P. Imparis colonies get over 20-30 workers. I'd like to see someone's colony get past it.

My 3 queen colony has roughly 35+ workers, my 2 queen colony has 25+ workers, and all of my single queen colonies (6 colonies) have roughly 10+ each. I haven't updated my journal in a long time though.

Yeah, my mistake. Like I said, I meant single queen colonies.

 

My largest single queen colony is approaching 20 workers. All of my colonies have laid another batch of eggs by now so I'm sure that they'll be around 30 workers by hibernation time. I'll update my journal soon.

Edited by Reevak, August 17 2017 - 8:49 AM.

[RhodyAnts]

I have to question wether hibernation is necessary for this species. Their nests are several feet in the ground, meaning the temperature is almost constant year round, and all the literature I've read on them discusses in astonishment how they are found foraging in below freezing temps and in nearly every month of the winter. Plus with their estevation in the hottest months of the summer, when would they actually ever have time to do anything.

This might be the reason for the failure of most/any to get their colony out of the first year. Keep in mind this is from a guy who's allowed his colony to overheat and stop producing brood. So I might not be a choice model of good judgement.

Side note my colony is keeping cool in my mini fridge, and I hoping eggs will be forth coming this week!

[noebl1]

I've had the identical thought about this as well.  I wondered about P. imparis and Lasius as I thought I read on here that both of those species dig very deep nests.  Unlike many tree/wood bearing species like Camponotus or Temnothorax that can withstand freezing temps as exposed to the elements more readily.

[RhodyAnts]

I didn't know that about lasius. Do lasius have any replete or replete-like workers? I ask because I'm unaware if they winter forage, and they'd need food for the winter if they don't. Maybe they have a non nest environmental trigger for hibernation.

[Nathant2131]

Two days ago I gave each colony a piece of sliced mealworm (freshly killed from my culture, no freezing or anything) (Since it was sliced they could get to the white gooey part without having to get through the exoskeleton) at the end of their tubes. Their reaction was awesome after the first workers discovered the piece only seconds after I placed it. As soon as the colony found it, they started feeding. Most of the colonies gathered up a good portion of their workforce to start eating. Eventually the colonies left just a completely hollow exoskeleton by that night/the next morning. They probably would have eaten more if I gave it to them.

 

I have also noticed that all the colonies now have pretty much only pupae, and the repletes still have super fat sugar-filled gasters (and I suppose now protein filled as well, but this was apparent even before the mealworm feeding) despite the last time being fed sugar was early July. I think this is because the colonies are going through their natural estivation and storing up their foods and not laying eggs. This also may be why they were very receptive to the mealworms and ate all of it. Most colonies don't have any larvae to feed the protein to though, (and even the colonies that do have only a couple) so it must be going into the "repletes".

 

Anyways the whole "replete" thing is definitely specific to the worker; Some workers have large to huge gasters, some look very slim. This however, didn't seem very affective on which type of worker was eating the mealworm. I was not being hugely observant, but it seems some fat-gastered workers were also going out of the colonies to feast on the mealworms themselves. But were the super fat repletes displaying this behaviour? I forget unfortunately. Maybe the pictures of the feeding I took will reveal.

 

Also, the colonys' queens are totally lazy and don't rely on themselves to feed the colony anymore, unlike what some of them did when they had a very small workforce. (Drinking the Sunburst themselves) They kind of just lie around in the center of the nest, lay eggs (but not as of late) and be fat.

 

I have yet to remove the small cotton balls from the last Sunburst feeding (Last July) but they don't seem to be growing much on them or harbouring any problems. I'm not sure if the workers are still able to suck the sugars off of them. It is definitely a lot dryer than when I first gave them to the colonies but I don't know if there is any Sunburst left in them. Or if the workers could get any of it off if it's dry like that. If they can't get any more sugar or are not bothering to whether they can or can't, they are very, very good at rationing if you take a glance at their gasters.

 

Anyways here are the pictures from the mealworm feeding. Some colonies had dragged the mealworm pieces back to their colony by the time I started photographig them.

 

Colony 8

My healthiest and seemingly largest colony, their nest is way back in the cotton so you can't see much of the workforce or queen.

 

It's funny to think that this was the colony with the "Cotton throne" queen. :~)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Colony 7

 

 

 

 

 

Colony 5

This colony was dragging the mealworm piece back during my photo session.

 

 

 

 

Colony 3

 

 

 

Colony 2

 

 

 

 

 

Colony 1

 

 

 

And here's a picture of the whole crew:

 

 

When I checked today, all the mealworm exoskeletons were thrown next to the small cotton balls as trash.

[RhodyAnts]

Very nice colonies. Youd might be able to drop them out of estevation by lowering the temp. This is what I'm currently trying to do with my colony. Time will tell if it's working.

[Aquaexploder]

Very nice colonies. Youd might be able to drop them out of estevation by lowering the temp. This is what I'm currently trying to do with my colony. Time will tell if it's working.

Yes, Rhody Ants and I have also been dealing with the egg laying issue. We both found that it is effective if you keep them at about 68 degrees Fahrenheit. Once they feel this comfortable temperature they will begin producing eggs again. Otherwise as a lot of P. imparis keepers are saying, they are a very hardy species however they are very finicky when it comes to the temperature.

Edited by Aquaexploder, August 23 2017 - 5:10 AM.

[Nathant2131]

Very nice colonies. Youd might be able to drop them out of estevation by lowering the temp. This is what I'm currently trying to do with my colony. Time will tell if it's working.

Yes, Rhody Ants and I have also been dealing with the egg laying issue. We both found that it is effective if you keep them at about 68 degrees Fahrenheit. Once they feel this comfortable temperature they will begin producing eggs again. Otherwise as a lot of P. imparis keepers are saying, they are a very hardy species however they are very finicky when it comes to the temperature.

Ever since I moved them to the basement a few months back it has been from 64-68 f, mostly 68. If estivation is the reason why no eggs are being laid (which is what I'm assuming) I have no intent to get them out of it. I would rather give my colonies what they would do in the wild to better their chances in captivity.

So your whole temperature theory may be false, as my colonies are not laying eggs in the cooler temperatures they have been in for a few months. They might have even stopped laying the minute I placed them in my basement, which could have been because of the theories below.

I do wonder if they stopped laying eggs as soon as I put them in the basement, and this triggered them into estivation for whatever reason. Or it triggered them into hibernation, which would... not be good. Going from my hot room to cool basement is dramatic, so that might have made them thought its winter. And like we've been discussing here, P. imparis nests may be very deep and the temperature during winter might be a lot warmer than what our arboreal ants endure. Maybe it just so happens that this low to high sixties is what this species endures in winter.

Just some of my thoughts. But I do hope that they are estivating, not hibernating or some other problem.

I wonder what the temp is in P. imparis nests during summer.

[ultraex2]

Yeah, I don't think it's 100% dependent on weather either - I've been keeping the ones I caught out in my living room in 75-80 degree temperature all summer and they just laid some more eggs within the past week or so.  I've only been feeding them once a week since the repletes look really full, but I'm kind of wondering if the colonies have to collect a certain amount of food before the queen will lay eggs.  

[RhodyAnts]

My temperature theory is more of a hope as I don't have many workers. One colony has been having some attrition issues on top of that. I'm am more than a little panicked that I will lose all my workers befor they are replaced. Given that my last pupae eclosed a week or two ago, that means it was born in june.

I understand your hesitation to bring them of estevation, in light of how many workers you have. You are likely right that it might be a timing thing and not a temperature thing as your temp should be low enough. I have noticed eggs since I put them in the fridge (modified), but it is possible they had always been there and were just hiding.

I would have to guess there temp would be nearly exactly your basement temp, given how deep there nest is.
My temperature theory is more of a hope as I don't have many workers. One colony has been having some attrition issues on top of that. I'm am more than a little panicked that I will lose all my workers befor they are replaced. Given that my last pupae eclosed a week or two ago, that means it was born in june.

I understand your hesitation to bring them of estevation, in light of how many workers you have. You are likely right that it might be a timing thing and not a temperature thing as your temp should be low enough. I have noticed eggs since I put them in the fridge (modified), but it is possible they had always been there and were just hiding.

I would have to guess there temp would be nearly exactly your basement temp, given how deep there nest is.

[AntsMaryland]

I never knew that Prenelopis Imparis ants have repletes so early on. In the wild do those repletes stay in the nest all the time or as they get older to they also forage for food? Thanks. Sorry for my ignorance.

[Nathant2131]

I never knew that Prenelopis Imparis ants have repletes so early on. In the wild do those repletes stay in the nest all the time or as they get older to they also forage for food? Thanks. Sorry for my ignorance.

In the wild I have observed workers of this species getting fatter than other species of ants by drinking their favored tree sap, only a little smaller than the biggest ones I see in my colony. Remember that their "repletes" are not as hardcore as those in the genus Myrmecocystus, they honestly just look like slightly-more-obese-than- normal ants.

[VoidElecent]

We took ours out of estivation today! They have around 35 to 40 workers each, hopefully they make it to year 2.

[Nathant2131]

After more or less ignoring these fellas for the last couple months as they seemed content, a few minutes ago I fed each colony a piece of grape grown in our yard (Some colonies got the inner green part, others got the skin that still had lots of juices on them). to my surprise, they all gobbled it, whether it was the green part or skin. So far this species has only rejectet 1 out of all the 4 foods I have offered them. I really was not hopeful on them accepting a grape, but I was proven wrong. I like how they accept different things as I can provide them a diverse diet with different ingredients and quantities of ingredients.

 

With the brood situation: For the last month or two it's been really hard to tell if there are any brood remaining. I've been seeing at random times, a couple colonies bringing out a small batch of eggs but it almost seems they dissapear into thin air all the time. Today I could see nothing, but again it's so hard to analyize them so I can't say for sure. Most if not all of the pupae have eclosed by now. The colonies are pretty much not growing anymore, but I'm not worried. 

 

The basement temps have also been decreasing slightly as fall rolled in. Stays around 63-64 F now. The basement humidity is high, in the 70%s. Though I'm not sure if that is the same for the test tubes.

 

All colonies but colony 8 have test tubes 25-75% full with water. Colony 8's is completely depleted. I'll have to do something about that as they are one of the bigger colonies, my personal favorite. Formicarium time?

[YsTheAnt]

I'd say that you should move them out and into a formicarium. And for the brood, I have heard that it is normal for them to have only one batch per year.
I'd say that you should move them out and into a formicarium. And for the brood, I have heard that it is normal for them to have only one batch per year.
Sorry for double post

[Mettcollsuss]

Nice.

[MegaMyrmex]

Wait, did you get the queens to lay the second batch of eggs?

[YsTheAnt]

Update?

[Nathant2131]

Update?

Not much has happened. Lots of their tubes have dried out however their cotton remains wet so I'm not worried yet. I suppose they could also get their moisture from the food I give them as it tends to condensate the tubes up.

Queen 6 is still alive. :0

[Coops]

 

Update?

Not much has happened. Lots of their tubes have dried out however their cotton remains wet so I'm not worried yet. I suppose they could also get their moisture from the food I give them as it tends to condensate the tubes up.

Queen 6 is still alive. :0

 

I tend to provide small takeaway tubs for young colonies, they take up no room and you could easily place a new test tue in there, I'm sure once they find it they would move in. lovely pictures by the way!