6 replies to this topic

[CheetoLord02]

So yeah, I found a Pogonomyrmex pima queen under a rock last week with a little bit of brood. Managed to catch her and 2 decent sized larvae, but one has mysteriously disappeared, so we're down to one. She's a skiddish one and I'm trying not to disturb her too much. She's kept in a covered test tube, heated with a heating cable and with substrate from the area where she was caught.

Right now I've only fed her chia seeds (it's all I have), and while she's moved them from one side of the test tube to the other, I don't know if she's actually eating them. She hasn't laid any new eggs, but she seems to be doing relatively ok.

Now, I've never kept this genus at all, and I know that pima isn't exactly similar to other Pogonomyrmex, but I'm wondering if there's any advice that you guys think I should know, specifically regarding diet and other things concerning founding Pogonomyrmex queens. I kinda suck with semiclaustral species and have had limited success, but I'm hoping I can pull this off with some help from you guys.

[AntsDakota]

She probably ate the other larva.

[ponerinecat]

No one really knows much about pima. They've been seen eating seeds and arthropods like normal, but that's it.

[M_Ants]

Do you think its a queen from this year? I saw some Pogonomyrex getting ready to fly today but they are supposed to fly later in the year.

[zantezaint]

Try fruit flies. If you want to catch wild fruit flies, place a jar outside with a slice of banana in it, and then wait for a few hours and trap them with the lid, or use a cone shaped funnel atop the jar to trap them as they go in.

[ponerinecat]

Do you think its a queen from this year? I saw some Pogonomyrex getting ready to fly today but they are supposed to fly later in the year.

Unlikely, she seemed to already be in the late stages of founding.

[CheetoLord02]

not planning on making this a journal or anything, but she's laid a few eggs, so i guess i'm doing at least something right!