4 replies to this topic

[Pumpkin_Loves_Ants]

As the title says, my Myrmica Punctiventris refuses to live in the test tube I have provided for her in her tubs and tubes container. She insists on running around trying to get out even though I have wrapped the test tube in a thick layer of red film. How do I lower her stress enough to get her to willingly move into the tube or is it just a waiting game?

 

Edit: I also provided her with a small drop of syrup but no protein yet

Edited by Pumpkin_Loves_Ants, September 5 2019 - 6:01 PM.

[Manitobant]

Unlike other semi claustral queens, myrmica do absolutely fine in just a test tube without an outworld. I would just put the tube on top of her or however you normally put ants in tubes. Also, if you aren't aware already, myrmica queens don't lay eggs until after hibernation.

[AnthonyP163]

Unlike other semi claustral queens, myrmica do absolutely fine in just a test tube without an outworld. I would just put the tube on top of her or however you normally put ants in tubes. Also, if you aren't aware already, myrmica queens don't lay eggs until after hibernation.

This is true, but I have been able to get some red Myrmica to lay when I caught them in August.

 

I would suggest leaving the queen in the tube for 1-2 days. The queen needs to establish that the test tube is her home, if you put her in a tubs and tubes setup recently after catching her she has probably not yet settled.

[Pumpkin_Loves_Ants]

 

Unlike other semi claustral queens, myrmica do absolutely fine in just a test tube without an outworld. I would just put the tube on top of her or however you normally put ants in tubes. Also, if you aren't aware already, myrmica queens don't lay eggs until after hibernation.

This is true, but I have been able to get some red Myrmica to lay when I caught them in August.

 

I would suggest leaving the queen in the tube for 1-2 days. The queen needs to establish that the test tube is her home, if you put her in a tubs and tubes setup recently after catching her she has probably not yet settled.

 

I left her in overnight with a soft light shining on the setup and it seems to have worked! She has moved into the test tube and all is well for now. This is my first time having a semi claustral queen so I am taking great care not to cause any unneeded stress.

[spartANTS]

i bought a few Myrmica species from https://canada-ant-colony.com/ and like always i created a bookmark of each species with link of info , picture ,care etc...

 

and i saw this about the Myrmica punctiventis

source of the text

https://link.springe...1007/BF00164122

 

it's about polydomy and sexual ......get ready  

 

 

Colony structure and reproductive investment were studied in a population of Myrmica punctiventris. This species undergoes a seasonal cycle of polydomy. A colony overwinters in entirety but fractionates into two or more nest sites during the active season and then coalesces in the fall. Colony boundaries were determined by integrating data on spatial pattern, behavioral compatability, and genetic relatedness as revealed by protein electrophoresis. Colonies contained at most one queen. Consequently, a colony consisted of one queenright nest and one or more queenless nests. Furthermore, estimates of relatedness were fully consistent, with queens being single mated. M. punctiventris therefore has a colony genetic structure that conforms to the classical explanation of the maintenance of worker sterility by kin selection. Kin selection theory predicts that workers would favor a female-biased allocation ratio while selection on queens would favor equal investment in males and females. We predicted that in polydomous populations, queenless nests would rear more female reproductives from diploid larvae than queenright nests. There was a significant difference between queenright and queenless nests in sexual allocation; queenless nests allocated energy to reproductive females whereas queenright nests did not. At neither the nest nor colony levels did worker number limit sexual production. We also found that nests tended to rear either males or females but when colony reproduction was summed over nests, the sexes were more equally represented. The difference in allocation ratios between queenless and queenright nests was attributed solely to queen presence/absence. Our work shows that polydomy provides an opportunity for workers to evade queen control and thereby to sexualize brood.