11 replies to this topic

[Poarch0]

My son is fascinated with ants. I thought they were simple creatures, boy was I wrong. We have grown apart from multiple deployments. I’m out now and This could be something we could enjoy together. Advice would be great. He is wanting a large ant. We live in boomer NC. I’m willing to drive and meet anywhere. We have looked on tarheel ant website these have caught our eye so far Camponotus pennsylvanicus , crematogaster. We’re open to anything. I have no idea what I’m doing but to satisfy him we bought a small ant farm and had some red carpenter ants shipped to us. Thanks in advance

[Mettcollsuss]

I'm assuming NC stands for North Carolina. If so, some good beginner species would be Aphaenogaster, Camponotus, Formica, Lasius, Pogonomyrmex, and Tetramorium. All these species have their ups and downs, so do proper research before acquiring them. Also, about the Crematogaster, I agree that they are awesome, however, I don't recommend them as a beginner species. 1, the queens are very elusive, and 2, they are escape artists and can climb easily over most barriers.

 

Hope this helps!

[Penguin]

As he wants large ants, Crematogaster spp. would not be ideal as they are small, while C. pennsylvanicus is fairly large so it would be a good choice. Could we see the ant-farm (formicarium is the proper name) to see if it is suitable to contain a full colony with a queen, workers and brood. Also shipping reproductive ants (queens) is illegal in the states, and not very humane but if they are just workers they will die out in a few weeks/months.

[Poarch0]

It is not suitable we just bought one to satisfy him for now. We plan on making a small one with a test tube and a hermit crab aquarium (the ones you buy at the beach). Just until the colony grows more. Appreciate the advice, havnt had luck finding people that will reply that had colonies for sale this summer. We’ve looked on AntsCanada and they put us in contact with someone but we havnt heard anything back.

[Poarch0]

I’m aware of the law, wasn’t at first but after looking for weeks for someone that sales a small colony. The ones we received were workers.

[noebl1]

If you're willing to wait, Camponotus are pretty early flyers.  I live up here in Massachusetts, and they started flying as early as end of April/early May here, so guessing probably a bit earlier down there.  Plus right now with them hibernating, you're not missing anything at the moment even if you got a colony tomorrow, they should be in a fridge/cool place to hibernate.  The largest flights up here were late May to early June.  Not sure how urban/rural of an area you live, but find Camponotus will often have one very large flight (hard to miss), and many many many smaller flights for several weeks.  They start around late afternoon a couple hours before sunset, and will fly into the night and very easy to capture with flashlights.  Very often (if you watch these forums), you'll see people in an entire region over hundreds of miles having Camponotus flights at the same time (in 2016 it was from PA thru ME on one occasion when conditions were right.)

 

If you go this route, capture a bunch, as I find they can have a fairly low survival rate compares to other species I've caught.  I captured a bunch of different Camponotus sp. last year, and lost over 50% in the test tubes within the first few weeks.  Some due to parasites, others for unknown reasons (we did have a drought in 2016, so could have been lingering nutrition issues from that, but unsure.)

 

I'm not against buying ants from other members at all, but where I live, Camponotus is in such huge numbers I have a hard time spending money on them.

Edited by noebl1, December 21 2017 - 4:16 PM.

[Poarch0]

We live way back in the woods. Not against hunting a queen but not sure we could find one. It would be more rewarding to catch one.

[Mettcollsuss]

We live way back in the woods. Not against hunting a queen but not sure we could find one. It would be more rewarding to catch one.

For a big ant like Camponotus, queens are almost impossible to miss. Their wings catch the light and are often a golden color. They also make a very loud humming noise when they fly. Plus, after a bit of ant keeping, your eyes get used to noticing detail. I've been keeping ants for about a year now, and I've gone from only being able to spot large ants to spotting Brachymyrmex depilis workers without even trying. Camponotus also flies for 4 months, so you have a lot of time. Also, you said you live in the woods, in which case that makes it even easier.

Edited by Mettcollsuss, December 21 2017 - 4:39 PM.

[noebl1]

 

We live way back in the woods. Not against hunting a queen but not sure we could find one. It would be more rewarding to catch one.

For a big ant like Camponotus, queens are almost impossible to miss. Their wings catch the light and are often a golden color. They also make a very loud humming noise when they fly. Plus, after a bit of ant keeping, your eyes get used to noticing detail. I've been keeping ants for about a year now, and I've gone from only being able to spot large ants to spotting Brachymyrmex depilis workers without even trying. Camponotus also flies for 4 months, so you have a lot of time. Also, you said you live in the woods, in which case that makes it even easier.

 

 

^-- This     When there's a Camponotus flight, it's honestly impossible to miss as they are large ants, and I have observed here numerous Camponotus sp. will fly at the same time.  I live in the woods here, and literally see hundreds.

 

I also agree with Mettcollsuss as I've always been interested with life sciences, but only last couple years into ants.  I've seen many many Camponotus, and only occasionally a Lasius queen or two before I started paying attention.  Now that I am actively looking, I have found so many more species than I ever have before, many I had no idea were here.  Both found from looking intentionally during the day or hunting at night for queens attracted to lights, and randomly going for a walk and finding them.

 

Regardless, nothing wrong with buying ants.  Just be prepared for queens often die for no reason (which is frustrating), so buying a small starter colony doesn't always guarantee success.   Whichever way you go, welcome to the hobby

[Poarch0]

I’ve honestly never seen or possible paid attention to them. I’m hoping it’s as easy as you say. I’m gonna continue to look for a colony to adopt. We will also try to catch a queen this spring/summer. My son is 8 and very excited.

[Martialis]

We live way back in the woods. Not against hunting a queen but not sure we could find one. It would be more rewarding to catch one.

 

The woods seem like an excellent place to find a queen ant. If you can get a black light of some sort and shine it on a white sheet (or even siding) at night, there are usually a few queens flying st night in the Spring and Summer. Warmer, more humid nights work best.

[Poarch0]

I hope your right my son sends me videos everyday of different ants