5 replies to this topic

[BitT]

1. Location (on a map) of collection: Central Florida
2. Date of collection: 06-26-2020
 

I suspect she is a Camponotus floridanus? Can someone confirm or correct me here? I know I've seen a LOT of males of two types of Camponotus a while ago and have been seeing a few on and off for weeks but haven't seen a queen until now. She's the largest of all the queen species I've seen up to this point, which sadly I forgot to measure her before leaving work.

 

 

 

 

Also I think I might have stumbled upon a termite queen? Or rather she was waiting for me on my car's drivers side window with wings stuck on the condensation when I was headed for work. So glad I had the foresight not to just leave her with a cotton ball plug because she easily weaseled her way through the cotton while I was at work. Wasn't planning on keeping termites but... she was just so conveniently there waiting for me... Anyone can confirm if she is and what species?

She's so hideous but would love to see her all bloated and rolly poly lol if all queens get like that?

 

[AntsDakota]

I believe both are correct. However, the termite queen can not survive without a king.

[BitT]

I believe both are correct. However, the termite queen can not survive without a king.

Oh, yah. I completely forgot about the King thing with termites. Sadly I only saw her there and she already dropped her wings while in the tube. Is there any way in finding a male? When I found her I did take a quick look around to see if I saw any others but didn't see a single other like her.

[Aaron567]

Camponotus floridanus queen and an Incisitermes snyderi termite dealate. Male and female termite reproductives look pretty much the same, and as AntsDakota said, you won't be able to start a colony unless you acquire a male/female pair. You'll know when termites are paired up when one termite is closely following the other from behind.

[ponerinecat]

 

I believe both are correct. However, the termite queen can not survive without a king.

Oh, yah. I completely forgot about the King thing with termites. Sadly I only saw her there and she already dropped her wings while in the tube. Is there any way in finding a male? When I found her I did take a quick look around to see if I saw any others but didn't see a single other like her.

 

Well the thing is you could also need a female. Termite reproductives are almost impossible to distinguish unless you closely analyze some of their features (I believe it was the arrangement of the exoskeleton plates on either the underside of the tip of the abdomen, the place where the wings were originally attached, or maybe both.) So unless they pair up and its almost certain you have both genders, as of now you could need an individual of either gender.

[BitT]

 

 

I believe both are correct. However, the termite queen can not survive without a king.

Oh, yah. I completely forgot about the King thing with termites. Sadly I only saw her there and she already dropped her wings while in the tube. Is there any way in finding a male? When I found her I did take a quick look around to see if I saw any others but didn't see a single other like her.

 

Well the thing is you could also need a female. Termite reproductives are almost impossible to distinguish unless you closely analyze some of their features (I believe it was the arrangement of the exoskeleton plates on either the underside of the tip of the abdomen, the place where the wings were originally attached, or maybe both.) So unless they pair up and its almost certain you have both genders, as of now you could need an individual of either gender.

 

Thank you, everyone. It seems finding a termite pair is going to be a lot more complicated than just collecting queen ants. XD I'll keep an eye out for more but since I didn't really plan on keeping termites (at least not yet) and I know so little about them right now I'll probably end up just feeding it to my ants. Maybe another year or so after I have established my current ant colonies and get experience in that I may consider termite keeping in the future.

 

For now I'll just incubate my many ant queens and be excited about my new Camponotus floridanus. Thanks again for all your help!