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JCRHJM's Australian Ants


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109 replies to this topic

#101 Offline JCRHJM - Posted February 13 2022 - 3:17 AM

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Time for the final update.....

 

I believe I found the reason for why the nigrocincta brood keep failing, that is because the colony has not been receiving enough water which caused the larvae to die. I figured it out when I accidentally spilled some water into the sand in the outworld and they quickly moved their brood into the wet patches. The hydration system of this nest loses water a lot quicker than the other 2 ASA nests I have so the amount of water typically used for those is not enough. Now they have a pile of eggs and some small larvae which I am confident will do well now that I have increased the amount and frequency of hydration.

 

The Rhytidoponera Metallica are yet continuing to expand their tunnels, every few day they accept a few sizeable mealworm chunks. Safe to say these guys are the most prolific of my colonies, I expect to have to add more dirt to their setup when i come back. The springtail population is also booming and providing valuable cleaning and food services. 

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The forficata are growing at their typical glacial pace but haven't had any brood deaths so there's no reason for concern. Still at 3 workers, 1 mature larvae and a pile of eggs. 

 

The camponotus aeneopilosus have 4 cocoons which I predict will hatch in another week or 2, they also have a good number of both large and small larvae. The brood outnumbers the workers so a population boom is iminent.

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#102 Offline ANTdrew - Posted February 13 2022 - 7:19 AM

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Why final update?
"The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer." Prov. 30:25
Keep ordinary ants in extraordinary ways.

#103 Offline SYUTEO - Posted February 13 2022 - 7:25 AM

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Why final update?

I think it's because he's moving to Queensland for his third year of university.


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Began antkeeping in 2018  :)

 

All ant journal: https://www.formicul...os-ant-journal/


#104 Offline JCRHJM - Posted February 13 2022 - 10:38 PM

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Why final update?

Final for the moment, I will be updating again when I'm back



#105 Offline JCRHJM - Posted March 4 2022 - 5:43 AM

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Update time,

(this is from the information my parents have given me, I'm still away)

The rhytidoponera are trucking on as usual nothing of note to report. When I get back I will definitely add more coco fibre for increased burrowing medium.

Aeneopilosus now have 11 workers with several cocoons and significant brood. 

The nigrocincta brood have bounced back nicely as I predicted from the increased watering. Currently one large one with several small ones, hoping for successful cocooning following by eclosing.

The forficata still have a mature larvae and eggs, I suppose the low temperatures Australia has been experiencing haven't helped at all. But these guys take AGES for any development so I'm not worried. 

My parents have been handling the caretaking tasks excellently (feeding, watering and rubbish removal)


Edited by JCRHJM, March 4 2022 - 5:47 AM.

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#106 Offline JCRHJM - Posted July 3 2022 - 6:06 AM

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Time for an update......

 

Rhytidoponera metallica appear to be going strong, activity is diminished due to the cold but there are still a few workers roaming the setup usually. They have moved cocoons away from the walls so they are no longer visible from the outside. The springtail population has absolutely exploded so that they cover almost every square millimetre of dirt. I don't believe they negatively impact the colony so all should be fine. 

 

Myrmecia Nigrocincta did receive 3 cocoons from the last batch of brood though they inexplicably did not eclose properly, which means the colony is still at 22 ants. Currently there are no brood and I expect more eggs to be laid when it warms up. If there are no workers successfully produced after this summer I will definitely move them into a ytong formicarium as brood production was previously successful in that type of nest. In that case I plan on using their current acrylic formicarium for a purpureus colony. 

 

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Myrmecia Forficata currently have a batch of 4/5 larvae to go with the queen and her 3 workers. They are still bringing in protein and growing despite the cold temperatures. I expect workers to arrive mid spring. 
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Camponotus Aeneopilosus now have 17 workers and a big pile of larvae, it appears brood growth has stopped as they don't consume protein and no cocoons are present though the brood pile is still substantial. They spend their time resting in a dormant like state now and I am expecting a big jump in numbers when it warms up. 

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#107 Offline JCRHJM - Posted July 17 2022 - 6:54 AM

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So, I was bushwalking in Ku ring gai National Park today and caught a Myrmecia pilliventris queen!

She totally caught me off guard so I had to use my brothers water bottle but she's in a tubs and tubes setup now. 

As of now she's explored the setup a little but has mostly been hiding inside the test tube, I'm not sure when brood is gonna come though I would say spring is a safe bet. 

Rather annoyingly I only have 2 days before I leave my ants to go back to university so there won't be any updates on this for a while.

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Edited by JCRHJM, July 17 2022 - 6:54 AM.

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#108 Offline smares - Posted July 17 2022 - 8:30 PM

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Love the jaws on her!

#109 Offline Leptomyrmx - Posted July 17 2022 - 9:45 PM

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So, I was bushwalking in Ku ring gai National Park today and caught a Myrmecia pilliventris queen!

She totally caught me off guard so I had to use my brothers water bottle but she's in a tubs and tubes setup now. 

As of now she's explored the setup a little but has mostly been hiding inside the test tube, I'm not sure when brood is gonna come though I would say spring is a safe bet. 

Rather annoyingly I only have 2 days before I leave my ants to go back to university so there won't be any updates on this for a while.

 

 

Love the jaws on her!

 

Wait... the jaws! Can I see some closer photos? From here they look serrated, which would mean she is a Myrmecia queenslandica instead.


My Ants:

Colonies: Camponotus humilior 1w, Opisthopsis rufithorax 11w, Aphaenogaster longiceps ~5w, Pheidole sp. ~235w ~15m, Iridomyrmex sp. 2q 1w, Brachyponera lutea 6w, Crematogaster sp. ~20w, Podomyrma sp. 1w

Queens: Polyrhachis cf. robinsoni, Polyrhachis (Campomyrma) sp. (likely infertile)

Previously Kept: Colobopsis gasseri, Technomyrmex sp., Rhytidoponera victorae, Nylanderia cf. rosae, Myrmecia brevinoda/forficata, Polyrhachis australis, Solenopsis/Monomorium

Key: Q = Queen, W = Worker, M = Major

Youtube Channel: Ants of Sydney - YouTube

Patreon (for YouTube channel): https://www.patreon.com/antsofsydney


#110 Offline JCRHJM - Posted July 17 2022 - 10:30 PM

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So, I was bushwalking in Ku ring gai National Park today and caught a Myrmecia pilliventris queen!

She totally caught me off guard so I had to use my brothers water bottle but she's in a tubs and tubes setup now. 

As of now she's explored the setup a little but has mostly been hiding inside the test tube, I'm not sure when brood is gonna come though I would say spring is a safe bet. 

Rather annoyingly I only have 2 days before I leave my ants to go back to university so there won't be any updates on this for a while.

 

 

Love the jaws on her!

 

Wait... the jaws! Can I see some closer photos? From here they look serrated, which would mean she is a Myrmecia queenslandica instead.

A bit difficult to photograph in her current setup but her jaws are definitely serrated. I do believe piliventris queens have serrated jaws unlike their workers and since piliventris is the most notable golden tail species (without the red legs) I assumed that's what it was though there's a whole load of other species it could be like gilberti, queenslandica. They are all equally amazing so I'm not too concerned about it, though if anyone can get an ID that would be great  (y)


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