2450 replies to this topic

[dspdrew]

It's a decent heatwave, but like most this time of the year, it's an offshore event which is very dry, so we'll see what happens.

[dspdrew]

The forecast humidity has gone up a tiny bit, and it looks like today is going to be just as hot as Saturday, and even hotter than Saturday in some areas. I think most likely something will be flying.

[SoySauce]

I didn't have any luck today. I started in the Cleveland National Forest hoping the Pogonomyrmex's would fly but they didn't. Then I did some awesome off roading through the Thomas mountain. I dug at a couple small mounds and I did see drone and/or alates but nothing was flying up there either. It seems like they're going too sooner than later tho. I'm by Lake Hemet now and I'm going to see if I can get to Joshua tree before sundown. I'm spending the night in Palm Springs and am going to look around the desert. If there isn't anything flying, I may swing by Coachella

[dspdrew]

I rarely find anything during the day time in the hills during spring and summer heatwaves. It almost all happens after dark. As for the desert, generally nothing is going to fly unless it rains.

[SoySauce]

Yeah that explains why I got skunked today. I saw lots of different kind of ants though. That was neat. I may check the Chaney trail tomorrow night .

[soulsynapse]

found 2 veromessor queens and more velvety tree ant queens than I could ever want on black star canyon road

 

they flew this evening, I walked into the middle of the flight

 

edit:

 

full disclosure: black star canyon road has cougar warning signs all over the place, and these queens were only coming out at 8:30 or later. it's also very close to a new moon, so it's pitch black in the canyon.

 

when I asked drew about this spot he said that he's walked the trail at night alone and he definitely wouldn't do it again. "you can definitely get eaten there" - quote, verbatim.

 

 

Edited by soulsynapse, April 22 2017 - 12:45 AM.

[dspdrew]

I found a few Liometopum occidentale queens around my truck while running my black light in Trabuco Canyon. Then in Mount Baldy, Camponotus had huge flights. TONS of C. sansabeanus and C. vicinus. I also found a few C. laevigatus and C. quercicola. A few of us are planning to go back out there again tonight.

[PTAntFan]

Oh crap. Camponotus? Tons? What time is best?

[dspdrew]

They usually start flying around 9:00 PM.

[SanBernardino909]

Hey Dspdrew where at around Mt Baldy ?

[PTAntFan]

Just couldn't make it.  Hope it was good. 

[SoySauce]

Just couldn't make it.  Hope it was good.

Good would be an understatement . It was a pleasure meeting all you guys last night!

[PTAntFan]

What'd ya find?

[SoySauce]

Everything Drew listed but the numbers for some were crazy.

[PTAntFan]

<sigh>. Wonder if they'll go again tonight or at least be crawling about. Would love to grab some laevigatus. Can you drop a gps pin or something specific?

[SoySauce]

I think you'd have a good chance of finding them tonight. Nurbs said all the queens should be around for a few days. There were plenty of laevigatus last night. If you go hike in the Icehouse trail, look on all the dead oak logs. That's where we found all ours. If you hike a couple miles up the trail, there are a bunch of huge oak logs on and around a stream. That was the laevigatus jackpot. It was a crazy hike to do at 1am but Nurbs was gracious enough to go a second time to accompany myself and son (thanks again Nurbs!)

[PTAntFan]

1am! That's crazy. Why so late?

[SoySauce]

We were getting while the getting was good!  It was just a hard hike up the mountain, and it took a lot of time just looking at all the trees.  We doubled back a lot too because as Nurbs said, the queens would usually 'repsawn' after you cleared a log. 

[nurbs]

<sigh>. Wonder if they'll go again tonight or at least be crawling about. Would love to grab some laevigatus. Can you drop a gps pin or something specific?

 

You have plenty of time in the next few days. There will be less and less each night as the queens start to settle in and find places to start their brood, but there are literally thousands of them crawling around, especially C. vicinus.

 

I filled up all my containers within the hour and had to bust out the plastic test tubes to get more.

 

Was great seeing everyone in person. Met Zeiss and also saw Soysauce and Soulsynapse (who made an ingenious C. quercicola snaring entraption haha).

[Zeiss]

Yeah, it was nice meeting everyone out there last night.  I had to stop caring about the C. vicinus, as there were too many.  I wish I had brought more containers, haha.  

 

I did manage to find the only C. clarithorax last night.  At least I think I was the only one who found one.  

 

Now I just need to get myself a massive bag of those mangos.  Nurbs you have gotten me addicted to them.