842 replies to this topic

[EthanNgo678]

P. Imparis?

[sirjordanncurtis]

P. Imparis?

 

yeah

[Jadeninja9]

Just caught a queen, thanks to Derpy's help. The weather's a little on and off today, so tomorrow might have larger results.

It’s not even warm though

[YsTheAnt]

Yeah, I think that the humidity from the incoming rain triggered it. This weekend and next week should have some flights.

[Rstheant]

Hey guys! I found a Prenolepis imparis queen on accident. I thought it was a fly and was about to step on it when I thought I’d give it a closer look. And what do you know!!?

[EthanNgo678]

My colony of C. modoc, 5 workers, is starting to forage. Should I take them out of hibernation now?

[YsTheAnt]

My colony of C. modoc, 5 workers, is starting to forage. Should I take them out of hibernation now?

Depends when you put them in. If it's been 3 months, then you most definitely can.

[Jadeninja9]

I think I missed the winter ant flights lol

[YsTheAnt]

I think I missed the winter ant flights lol

Nah, they haven't had their big flights yet.

[Jadeninja9]

 

I think I missed the winter ant flights lol

Nah, they haven't had their big flights yet.

 

Alright good

[Antking123]

Well after like 7 months my F. Moki colonies are finally laying eggs so I guess all ants are out of hibernation now and reproducing.

[YsTheAnt]

Small Prenolepis flight, 3 queens. When the first heatwave of the year hits they will hopefully fly in much larger numbers like last year.

[sirjordanncurtis]

Doesn't seem like there'll be much in the next week though

[YsTheAnt]

5+ queens in the past 20 mins. Prenolepis flying!

[Antking123]

Where like a public park or something in the Bay Area I've only been seeing winged males walking around

[Antking123]

Probably going to just walk around WVC all noon tomorrow to see if they are still flying 

[FSTP]

well for those of you that come across a huge horde of dealate queens make sure you grab as many as you can, becasue IDK if I'm going to have any luck and I'd like to buy some off you.

[Jadeninja9]

YS, I like how you can walk into a nuptial flight and find 5 queens in 20 minutes, but when I do it I find 2 males that land on the ground.

[YsTheAnt]

YS, I like how you can walk into a nuptial flight and find 5 queens in 20 minutes, but when I do it I find 2 males that land on the ground.

I'll tell you how I do it. First, locate the 'swarm zones'. Males are everywhere during the flights but you need to locate the places where queens are flying to. I find them by looking for a large concentration of males and the glittering of their wings.

While males will be common everywhere during flights, swarm zones will have MANY more males. Note that some places even with a high concentration of males don't have queens flying to them, so look for multiple.

Last year there was a huge one in the parking lot of my spot that yielded tons of queens. This year I only found one queen and a handful of males there, but there was a new, larger swarm 20 or so yards away. They aren't in the same place all the time.

I try to find at least two of these areas. Then, I walk between them and catch any queens I find. Queens in smaller flights come every five or so minutes to each swarm, so the more swarms you find the better. I then just loop around repeatedly until I find some queens.

Last year, they flew in HUGE numbers for a few days when it reached 72F. I hope when it warms up even more there will be similar flights. They are definitely not over so keep an eye out!

Edited by YsTheAnt, January 29 2019 - 6:20 PM.

[Jadeninja9]

 

YS, I like how you can walk into a nuptial flight and find 5 queens in 20 minutes, but when I do it I find 2 males that land on the ground.

I'll tell you how I do it. First, locate the 'swarm zones'. Males are everywhere during the flights but you need to locate the places where queens are flying to. I find them by looking for a large concentration of males and the glittering of their wings.

While males will be common everywhere during flights, swarm zones will have MANY more males. Note that some places even with a high concentration of males don't have queens flying to them, so look for multiple.

Last year there was a huge one in the parking lot of my spot that yielded tons of queens. This year I only found one queen and a handful of males there, but there was a new, larger swarm 20 or so yards away. They aren't in the same place all the time.

I try to find at least two of these areas. Then, I walk between them and catch any queens I find. Queens in smaller flights come every five or so minutes to each swarm, so the more swarms you find the better. I then just loop around repeatedly until I find some queens.

Last year, they flew in HUGE numbers for a few days when it reached 72F. I hope when it warms up even more there will be similar flights. They are definitely not over so keep an eye out!

 

Thanks!