6 replies to this topic

[Minadin]

I recently got a test tube setup from Ferox and there 4 queens with a few workers. My question is can I split up the queens into 4 separate test tubes. I read that when they grow more that one queen will become dominant and kill the others. By separating them, if possible, I am trying to maximize survival and found maybe another colony.

[ANTdrew]

I think you definitely could do this.

[Zeiss]

It doesn't matter what you do with them.  They succeed in both monogynous and polygynous settings.  That is why they are such an invasive ant species.  And if things don't work out, they're so dirt common you can pick them off the sidewalk like garbage.

[Mdrogun]

It's definitely possible to do; I've done it myself. I honestly have to ask though, why? Do you really want more than one Solenopsis invicta colony? They grow incredibly fast. What I've done in the past was pick out the best queen in terms of color, and then remove the rest from the colony. Usually feeding the ones I removed to my other ant colonies. Just allowed me to pick which queen I thought was the prettiest

[AntsDakota]

.  They succeed in both monogynous and polygynous settings.  That is why they are such an invasive ant species. 

But that isn't the only factor which makes a species a good invasive. Most polygynous species like Solenopsis molesta, Brachymyrmex sp., Camponotus nearcticus, Lasius flavus/brevicornis, Tetramorium tsushimae, some Formica,  and some Pheidole also do well in both polygynous and monogynous setups. I would assume growth rate and nest preference (such as in manufactured goods which will be shipped across the ocean) are also factors.

[AntsDakota]

 Do you really want more than one Solenopsis invicta colony? 

I think he was wondering whether this species was polygynous, and worried the queens would kill each other if not separated. 

 

They grow incredibly fast. What I've done in the past was pick out the best queen in terms of color, and then remove the rest from the colony. Usually feeding the ones I removed to my other ant colonies. Just allowed me to pick which queen I thought was the prettiest

Efficient way of getting rid of extra queens....

[Minadin]

A little over a week into any keeping so I basically wanted to split the queens for two reasons. First, I got 4 queens instead of 1 when I bought them. I figured maybe I got 4 colonies instead of one.

Second, I read that a dominate queen will kill off the others. Like a battle royals.