5 replies to this topic

[eclaires]

1. Location of collection --  caught in Jakarta on a wall in a balcony. It would definitely be counted as a city, with perhaps a few empty gardens/lots. it did not try to escape in any way when caught, but walked round the area calmly before settling near some cotton. 

2. Date of collection -- 9 November, 12PM (noon) 
3. Habitat of collection -- house/residential area
4. Length -- 11.5mm for the queen and about 6mm for the workers (can refer to the image because I measured from head to gaster excluding antennae)
5. Coloration -- queen is almost purely black excluding her legs and gaster which are very slightly brown under light. queen is very shiny. workers are much more brownish color, with a dark brown head and lighter brown thorax and gaster. (image below)
6. Distinguishing characteristics -- one petiole node, no noticeable spines or bumps on the body and a relatively large flat head with big mandibles and bent antennae. workers are similar just slightly slimmer heads presumably because they are minors?  
7. Behavior -- relatively calm under light, especially the queen; workers may get a little shocked when first introduced to light but quickly settle. large vibrations with disturb them greatly though. queen is rather adventurous/active, checking out food area. extremely stubborn when it comes to moving test tubes. 

 

*i think it's important to note that the queen laid orange eggs which later developed into the workers seen. will try to get more clearer pictures when macro lenses arrive

8. pictures! 

https://imgur.com/a/VA6O4g6

or 

https://drive.google...nxB?usp=sharing(these contain multiple pictures)

 

thank you in advance everyone  

Edited by eclaires, December 27 2022 - 2:18 AM.

[PurdueEntomology]

Camponotus sp. 

[antsriondel]

Camponotus.

[eclaires]

thank you so much! i was surprised at how fast workers had developed, considering it's only been slightly over a month and the queen has about 7 workers. perhaps its due to the hotter temperatures here.

 

Camponotus.

 

 

Camponotus sp. 

[PurdueEntomology]

 

thank you so much! i was surprised at how fast workers had developed, considering it's only been slightly over a month and the queen has about 7 workers. perhaps its due to the hotter temperatures here.

 

Camponotus.

 

 

Camponotus sp. 

 

Well we are dealing with a tropical species.  I am not familiar though with possible breaks in brood production due to climatic variables there. It may be that there is a brood reduction during the less rainy "dry season" unlike your current "rainy season".  Since you collected the dealate reproductive i.e., "queen" during your rainy season I wonder if reproductive brood production actually began during your dry season? Hmmm?  

[eclaires]

Not quite sure regarding the brood reduction, but here in Jakarta the rainy and dry seasons are rather inconsistent. Sometimes it can be hot for a few weeks during the rainy season and vice versa. In regards to the ants though, may I ask how often to feed them? I don't want to bother them too much (by exposing them to light and vibrations) but I'm scared that food will run out without me realizing. Should I feed them every 3-4 days or each week? and should it alternate between sugars and proteins or just present them with both sugars and protein simultaneously? 

 

 

 

thank you so much! i was surprised at how fast workers had developed, considering it's only been slightly over a month and the queen has about 7 workers. perhaps its due to the hotter temperatures here.

 

Camponotus.

 

 

Camponotus sp. 

 

Well we are dealing with a tropical species.  I am not familiar though with possible breaks in brood production due to climatic variables there. It may be that there is a brood reduction during the less rainy "dry season" unlike your current "rainy season".  Since you collected the dealate reproductive i.e., "queen" during your rainy season I wonder if reproductive brood production actually began during your dry season? Hmmm?