15 replies to this topic

[Aquaexploder]

So a while back a on May 24 I caught a Myrmica queen. I soon found out that this Myrmica queen most likely flew the year before and I found her while she was forging for her brood. It was late at night so I planned to release her exactly where I found her so she might find her way back to her claustral chamber. However it rained that night so I figured the pheromones would be wash away and as a result she would not be able to find her way back. Plus her entrance would be nonexistent. So I decided to keep her. Now if you fast forward to today she has a small pile of brood and some larvae. Pictures coming soon!

[FeedTheAnts]

How similar is Myrmica to Aphaenogaster, are there many physical differences?

[Nathant2131]

How similar is Myrmica to Aphaenogaster, are there many physical differences?

The workers of Aphaenogaster will have a steep and very noticeable declivity in the mesosoma; Myrmica species will have a mesosoma that is more or less convex. Myrmica also has more sculpturing all over them.

Edited by Nathant2131, June 30 2017 - 7:36 AM.

[Aquaexploder]

Update: She now has 4 nanitics. Their diet strictly consists of two fruit flies a week and a cotton ball soaked in sugar water. Sorry for not posting any pictures, it is very hard to see them in their current setup.

Edited by Aquaexploder, August 14 2017 - 9:54 AM.

[Aquaexploder]

Update: I recently had trees in my back yard cut down and their was a lot of wood shavings left behind. So I decided to put some in my Myrmica setup. Now they have decided to move underneath them.

[Connectimyrmex]

I'm glad your Myrmica colony is doing well!

Something I've observed in Myrmica is how adaptable they are. I took one queen and twenty workers from a hundred to thousand worker colony and they are doing extremely well. I also observed that wild and now queenless worker group adopt a new queen.

[Aquaexploder]

UPDATE: In my Myrmica colony's setup it became filled with spores. So I decided to move them into a very small formicarium, but they actually decided to move in under some wood shavings in their out world. They also have about two more workers now. Pictures coming soon!

Edited by Aquaexploder, September 21 2017 - 5:58 AM.

[ColKurtz]

UPDATE: In my Myrmica colony's setup it became filled with spores. So I decided to move them into a very small formicarium, but they actually decided to move in under some wood shavings in their out world. They also have about two more workers now. Pictures coming soon!

 

Can you share pictures of your setup  as well please?  I recent found 3 myrmica and have been trying to make my own mini outworlds for them to forage for honey and protein.  However, I fear my outworld is too large and my setup may not provide proper humidity.   Here is a picture of my present attempt.

 

 

The cap you see on the test Tube has a hole drilled in it.  It was my attempt to increase humidity by narrowing the exposure to the air of the outworld, and also to provide a ramp to make movement into and out easier.

 

also, with respect to feeding you mentioned in the august 15 post, are you providing live or dead fruit flies?  Were you providing this food source prior to the laying of eggs, etc.?  I'm sorry to badger you with question in your journal, but you seem to be the most recent active myrmica keeper.

 

if this is the wrong place for this inquiry, I'll delete it.  

 

Thanks in advance!

[Kevin]

However, I fear my outworld is too large and my setup may not provide proper humidity.   

 

In the wild, they have the whole world, don't they?

[Aquaexploder]

UPDATE: In my Myrmica colony's setup it became filled with spores. So I decided to move them into a very small formicarium, but they actually decided to move in under some wood shavings in their out world. They also have about two more workers now. Pictures coming soon!

 
Can you share pictures of your setup  as well please?  I recent found 3 myrmica and have been trying to make my own mini outworlds for them to forage for honey and protein.  However, I fear my outworld is too large and my setup may not provide proper humidity.   Here is a picture of my present attempt.
 


 
The cap you see on the test Tube has a hole drilled in it.  It was my attempt to increase humidity by narrowing the exposure to the air of the outworld, and also to provide a ramp to make movement into and out easier.
 
also, with respect to feeding you mentioned in the august 15 post, are you providing live or dead fruit flies?  Were you providing this food source prior to the laying of eggs, etc.?  I'm sorry to badger you with question in your journal, but you seem to be the most recent active myrmica keeper.
 
if this is the wrong place for this inquiry, I'll delete it.  
 
Thanks in advance!

It seems fine, don't worry.

[ColKurtz]

Thanks for the feedback. I have found some smaller outworld chambers for the future in basically the same setup. Given the artificial nature of this set up, I was curious if there was a standard practice or procedure to follow that would increase likelihood of success.

[Aquaexploder]

Update: Wow this is amazing! I gave them some fruit fly pupae and they are caring for it as one of their own! (Pictures soon I Promise)

[Connectimyrmex]

Awesome! My Anoplolepis gracilipes did something similar once! (I put a pinhead cricket in their enclosure. It fell into some honey and then managed to crawl around. A worker found it and started drinking the honey, and after that the worker picked it up and carried it back to its nest (alive!). It dropped it inside and let it hide under the colonyś pupae. He died when he got a mite infection).

[Nathant2131]

Update: Wow this is amazing! I gave them some fruit fly pupae and they are caring for it as one of their own! (Pictures soon I Promise)

Imagine how confused they'll be when a fly emerges.

[Connectimyrmex]

 

Update: Wow this is amazing! I gave them some fruit fly pupae and they are caring for it as one of their own! (Pictures soon I Promise)

Imagine how confused they'll be when a fly emerges.

 

 

Ant 1: GUYS LOOK AT ALL OF THE ALATES

 

Ant 2: LET'S HAVE A NUPTIAL FLIGHT

*In 2 days all of the fresh fruit in the house are gone*

[Aquaexploder]

I know it's to much space, but it's the only thing I can move them into right now.

Myrmica Colony https://imgur.com/a/83OV9(sorry pictures aren't that good)

Edited by Aquaexploder, October 4 2017 - 12:39 PM.