Jump to content

  • Chat
  •  
  •  

Welcome to Formiculture.com!

This is a website for anyone interested in Myrmecology and all aspects of finding, keeping, and studying ants. The site and forum are free to use. Register now to gain access to all of our features. Once registered and logged in, you will be able to create topics, post replies to existing threads, give reputation points to your fellow members, get your own private messenger, post status updates, manage your profile and so much more. If you already have an account, login here - otherwise create an account for free today!

Photo

Lasius sp. Queen -- 12/2/17 -- Chicago, IL -- Please Help!

lasius chicago lasius neoniger lasius flavus illinois id lasius queen lasius id lasius queen id

  • Please log in to reply
16 replies to this topic

#1 Offline Mettcollsuss - Posted December 2 2017 - 1:10 PM

Mettcollsuss

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,700 posts
  • LocationChicago, IL

1. Location of collection (ie: park/area, city/town, state/province, country).  Done.

 

 

2. Date of collection (more important for ID's of queens).   Unfortunately, I don't remember the exact date, but it was sometime around mid to late September.
 

3. Habitat of collection (ie: desert scrub, oak forest, riparian, etc.).  School garden.
 

4. Length (to the nearest millimeter or 1/16th of an inch.) Millimeters is preferred. Length is measured from the tip of the head to the tip of the gaster, excluding antennae, legs and stingers. Do not estimate, use a ruler! No matter how good you think you are at guessing the length of something, it's amazing how far off you can be sometimes.   About 9 to 9.5 millimeters.
 

5. Coloration, hue, pattern and texture (ie: dark redish-orange head, velvet-like gaster, translucent, hairy/bald, shiny/dull, etc.). Be as specific as possible, and you can use the diagram below if you need it.    Head: triangular, dark brown, not shiny but not dull, eyes aren't large but aren't small, either. Mandibles are a lighter color than the rest of the head. Thorax: no spikes or bumps, same color as the head. It slopes slightly towards the gaster and is in between dull and shiny. Petiole: not very visible. Gaster: lighter color than the head or abdomen. About twice as long as the thorax. From the top, the plates are a golden-brown, each plate having a gradation from a darker golden-brown to a lighter golden-brown. in between the plates is a thin stripe of film that's a bright golden-yellow. From the side, it's all the golden-yellow film. On the bottom, the plates are there, and possess the same general gradation, but they're a lot smaller and lighter, so the almost blend in with the golden-yellow film. Legs: the femur is just slightly lighter in color than the head & thorax, the tarsal segments are only sightly darker than the golden-yellow of the abdomen, and the tibia is in between the two other leg parts.

 

6. Distinguishing characteristics (ie: one petiole node/two petiole nodes, length and orientation of any spines or bumps on the thorax or waist, head shape, eye size, shape of mandibles, number of antennal segments, etc.) One petiole, triangular head, golden-brown abdominal plates.
 

7. Anything else distinctive (ie: odor, behavior, characteristics relative to others in the colony, etc.). She doesn't seem to get bothered by much and is very calm. She doesn't get freaked out when I take her out of the drawer. The only thing so far that annoys her is really bright lights, like when I look at her under my microscope. She also tends to stay near the water end of the tube, sometimes directly on the cotton.

 

8. Nest description (if you can find the nest, and you're sure it belongs to the ant you collected) (ie: rotted log, volcano-shaped mound of coarse gavel 10cm in diameter, etc.).   None

 

9. Nuptial flight time and date (if you witnessed the ant or it's colony having a nuptial flight or caught an alate you are confident was flying that day or time)  Unsure, though I found her around 4pm.
 

10 . Post the clearest pictures possible of the top, side, and face of the ant in question, and if possible, their nest and the habitat they were collected in.    Sorry if the photos end up being links. I'm not good with uploading photos.

 

http://www.formicult...abdomenthorax3/
 

http://www.formicult...abdomenthorax2/

 

http://www.formicult...w-thorax-focus/

 

http://www.formicult...n-gasterthorax/

 

http://www.formicult...-queen-gaster1/

 

http://www.formicult...-queen-gaster2/

 

http://www.formicult...-queen-gaster3/

 

http://www.formicult...-queen-gaster4/

 

http://www.formicult...een-headthorax/

 

http://www.formicult...adthoraxgaster/

 

http://www.formicult...us-queen-head1/

 

http://www.formicult...us-queen-head2/

 

http://www.formicult...us-queen-head3/

 

http://www.formicult...us-queen-head4/

 

http://www.formicult...us-queen-head5/

 

http://www.formicult...-queen-topview/

 

http://www.formicult...queen-topview2/

 

http://www.formicult...queen-topview3/

 

http://www.formicult...queen-topview4/

 

http://www.formicult...queen-topview5/


Edited by Mettcollsuss, January 5 2018 - 7:10 AM.

  • Spamdy likes this

#2 Offline FeedTheAnts - Posted December 2 2017 - 1:16 PM

FeedTheAnts

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,238 posts
  • LocationVirginia

Pictures please, very thorough, but we still needs pics.


Edited by TennesseeAnts, December 2 2017 - 1:16 PM.

  • Mettcollsuss likes this

I accidentally froze all my ants 


#3 Offline Mettcollsuss - Posted December 2 2017 - 2:46 PM

Mettcollsuss

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,700 posts
  • LocationChicago, IL

Pictures please, very thorough, but we still needs pics.

Yeah sorry about that. I accidentally hit post before I was done. I just edited it.


Edited by Mettcollsuss, December 2 2017 - 3:27 PM.


#4 Offline Mettcollsuss - Posted December 2 2017 - 3:55 PM

Mettcollsuss

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,700 posts
  • LocationChicago, IL

She might be easier to ID if/when workers arrive.



#5 Offline Mettcollsuss - Posted December 3 2017 - 6:08 AM

Mettcollsuss

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,700 posts
  • LocationChicago, IL

She's either L. flavus or L. neoniger, but I can't narrow it down any further.

 

EDIT: Italics


Edited by Mettcollsuss, December 3 2017 - 6:08 AM.


#6 Offline Hunter - Posted December 3 2017 - 6:29 AM

Hunter

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 564 posts
  • LocationWaterboro Maine

i don't think it is neoniger, she dosent look like mine, i think it is L. flavus


  • Mettcollsuss likes this

#7 Offline noebl1 - Posted December 3 2017 - 7:37 AM

noebl1

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,128 posts
  • LocationNorthern Massachusetts

i don't think it is neoniger, she dosent look like mine, i think it is L. flavus

 

Without clear shots of the mandibles and antenna, it's almost impossible to tell them apart.  2016 season I collected a bunch, and had a few unexpected results of some I thought were L. flavus/neoniger/etc, were not :)   There seems to be a bit of variation in size / color in Lasius even within the same species. 


  • Mettcollsuss likes this

#8 Offline Mettcollsuss - Posted December 3 2017 - 8:28 AM

Mettcollsuss

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,700 posts
  • LocationChicago, IL

 

i don't think it is neoniger, she dosent look like mine, i think it is L. flavus

 

Without clear shots of the mandibles and antenna, it's almost impossible to tell them apart.  2016 season I collected a bunch, and had a few unexpected results of some I thought were L. flavus/neoniger/etc, were not :)   There seems to be a bit of variation in size / color in Lasius even within the same species. 

 

 Well, I do have a microscope, so if there's any more detail info you need, I could probably find it.



#9 Offline Hazzbeen - Posted December 3 2017 - 8:36 AM

Hazzbeen

    Newbie

  • Members
  • Pip
  • 8 posts
  • LocationIrvine, California

Looks very much like my L. flavus. I am also not super keen on the subtle differences between flavus and neoniger either though. :(  Great description by the way. 

 

I can try to break out my usb microscope and give you some close-ups to compare if you would like.


  • Mettcollsuss likes this

Ant Species:                                                                             Other Insects:

Myrmecocystus mexicanus                                                       Pnigomantis medioconstricta

Camponotus fragilis                                                                  Peucetia viridans

Lasius niger                                                                               Blaptica dubia

Lasius flavus                                                

Messor barbarus                                                                       

 


#10 Offline Zmagz - Posted December 3 2017 - 1:32 PM

Zmagz

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 61 posts
  • LocationNew Jersey

lasius flavus


  • Mettcollsuss likes this

#11 Offline Mettcollsuss - Posted December 3 2017 - 2:00 PM

Mettcollsuss

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,700 posts
  • LocationChicago, IL

lasius flavus

Thanks



#12 Offline Mettcollsuss - Posted December 3 2017 - 2:11 PM

Mettcollsuss

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,700 posts
  • LocationChicago, IL

One thing though, now that we know what she is: she doesn't have any eggs or brood. Is this normal? Does L. flavus normally wait until after hibernation to lay eggs, or is this a sign that she's infertile?



#13 Offline Mettcollsuss - Posted December 3 2017 - 5:58 PM

Mettcollsuss

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,700 posts
  • LocationChicago, IL

I have also seen small yellow Lasius near where I caught her, but they were above ground, so that makes me think of L. neoniger, but she could still very well be L. flavus.



#14 Offline FeedTheAnts - Posted December 3 2017 - 6:22 PM

FeedTheAnts

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,238 posts
  • LocationVirginia

I'm going with flavus personally.


I accidentally froze all my ants 


#15 Offline Batspiderfish - Posted December 3 2017 - 6:46 PM

Batspiderfish

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,614 posts

Like Noebl said, without a photo of the antennal scapes showing off the hair coverage, there is very little to distinguish Lasius neoniger from the flavus group. Let's also take into account that eastern Lasius nearcticus is just as if not more common than L. flavus, and the only "easy" way to tell those apart are the relative length of the maxillary palp segments, a task which also requires very close examination. Best left at Lasius sp. Fall-flying Lasius generally do not lay eggs until the following spring.


Edited by Batspiderfish, December 3 2017 - 6:48 PM.

  • noebl1 and Mettcollsuss like this

If you've enjoyed using my expertise and identifications, please do not create undue ecological risk by releasing your ants. The environment which we keep our pet insects is alien and oftentimes unsanitary, so ensure that wild populations stay safe by giving your ants the best care you can manage for the rest of their lives, as we must do with any other pet.

 

Exotic ants are for those who think that vibrant diversity is something you need to pay money to see. It is illegal to transport live ants across state lines.

 

----

Black lives still matter.


#16 Offline Mettcollsuss - Posted December 4 2017 - 3:36 AM

Mettcollsuss

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,700 posts
  • LocationChicago, IL
Well, if workers arrive in the spring, that might make her easier to ID.

#17 Offline noebl1 - Posted December 4 2017 - 4:20 AM

noebl1

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 1,128 posts
  • LocationNorthern Massachusetts

Well, if workers arrive in the spring, that might make her easier to ID.

 

That's ultimately what I did...  Even with a really good macro lens, was hard to get good shots of the queens, especially without stressing them out.


  • Mettcollsuss likes this





Also tagged with one or more of these keywords: lasius, chicago, lasius neoniger, lasius flavus, illinois, id, lasius queen, lasius id, lasius queen id

0 user(s) are reading this topic

0 members, 0 guests, 0 anonymous users