212 replies to this topic

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

Don't look at Camponotus then lol...the founding stage is not fun...

[AntsDakota]

Well, Camponotus is still longer (barely).

[Nare]

This is a really cool species, for the fusca-group at least. iirc, they're one of the few, if not the only member of the Formica fusca-group that makes thatched mounds. I've seen a few of their mounds at this point, and while all Formica mounds are relatively small in my area (cause I'm in a big city), they're still a decent size. A few of their mounds had some nice thatching on them as well. Here are some pictures of a mound of theirs I saw:

 

 

If you get a big enough colony, you could probably be able to observe mound-building activity in captivity. I'm aware of someone who did so with a rufa-group colony, I don't see why this species wouldn't either.

[AntsDakota]

What about Ant_Dude’s F. pacifica colony? It has several thousand workers.

[Nare]

What about Ant_Dude’s F. pacifica colony? It has several thousand workers.

Not sure if pacifica perform such behavior. Again, not all Formica species do this, mainly just the parasitic species and one or two from the fusca-group, ie. argentea and glacialis I think.

[ANTdrew]

This is a really cool species, for the fusca-group at least. iirc, they're one of the few, if not the only member of the Formica fusca-group that makes thatched mounds. I've seen a few of their mounds at this point, and while all Formica mounds are relatively small in my area (cause I'm in a big city), they're still a decent size. A few of their mounds had some nice thatching on them as well. Here are some pictures of a mound of theirs I saw:


If you get a big enough colony, you could probably be able to observe mound-building activity in captivity. I'm aware of someone who did so with a rufa-group colony, I don't see why this species wouldn't either.

In all the archives of this forum, there isn’t a single successful journal of this species. That makes me worry they aren’t suited for captivity. I have no interest in challenging species because life is challenging enough as it is. Not sure what I’ll do with these, to be honest. Space is really at a premium when it comes to my colonies.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

true...however I feel you will be able to raise a successful colony in captivity! You've got this far, right?

[Nare]

true...however I feel you will be able to raise a successful colony in captivity! You've got this far, right?

I don't see why any Formica species shouldn't be keepable, even if keeping is reduced to having a colony in a bucket full of dirt, which might be the case with large colonies of rufa-group who tend to be notorious sprayers of formic acid. I don't see why this species isn't keepable though - I suspect most keepers just aren't committed enough to raise a large colony of them, and either let them go, neglect them, or release them.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

A naturalistic setup seems to be what Formica tend to enjoy due to their skittish nature and fear of most things...next time I get a Formica queen I'll try my hand at a naturalistic setup  

[AntsDakota]

Workers I’ve observed in nature tend to be quite aggressive and dominating. They and Lasius are the top dogs around here.

[ANTdrew]

Update 4-7-2020

 I retract everything negative I said about this colony in my last update because I'm having a lot of fun watching them now. They started eating more protein and venturing out a bit more as well. On Saturday, I saw a worker starting to dig a tunnel in the dirt box, so the next day I removed the felt from their test tube and tapped it a few times. Within minutes, the queen and all the colony were down in the dirt box tunnel! They are digging a lot and accepting protein like fruit flies and cricket legs. They move so fast that it reminds me of the strobe ants Australians talk about. That makes taking photos a PITA, though!

 

 

The dirt box design is a masterpiece, by the way.

[Da_NewAntOnTheBlock]

Wow, what a change!

[ANTdrew]

Mini-update 4-8-2020

 I forgot to mention that this colony currently has six workers and about ten larvae. They were at seven, but a dead nanitic showed up in their trash pile a few days ago. I fed them a cut up mealworm last night, and four workers came up to feast. It was all gone by morning, presumably dragged into their subterranean lair. I regret putting such dark colored substrate because you can barely make out the black workers against it, but whatever.

 

[TennesseeAnts]

See? I told you they'd do good! Once the colony gets past 40-50 workers (should be a couple weeks, maybe a few months) they should get REALLY active and will have estensive tunnel systems. I think I'm going to do a vivarium setup for one of my Formica integra colonies next year.

[ANTdrew]

Yeah, they’re so weird and jumpy. They move so fast it’s like they teleport. I love them.

[AntsDakota]

They should be called 'Northern Crazy Ants' instead of 'Field Ants'. It suits them better, in my opinion.

[TennesseeAnts]

They should be called 'Northern Crazy Ants' instead of 'Field Ants'. It suits them better, in my opinion.

We already have Northern Crazy Ants. Nylanderia spp.

[AntsDakota]

 

They should be called 'Northern Crazy Ants' instead of 'Field Ants'. It suits them better, in my opinion.

We already have Northern Crazy Ants. Nylanderia spp.

 

I believe they're known as 'Tawny Crazy Ants' or 'Raspberry Crazy Ants'.

[NickAnter]

Common names are stupid.

[AntsDakota]

They do help new people associate different ants to their proper taxonomic designations. Of course, those who are more experienced should certainly use their proper classifications. Just try pulling someone off the street and get them to pronounce Tapinoma melanocephalum, Pogonomyrmex occidentalis, Oecothylla smaragdina, Trachymyrmex septrionalis, just to name a few. They'd look at you like you're speaking in French.