5 replies to this topic

[schafro]

1. Location of collection: Skopje, Macedonia
2. Date of collection: 06/20/16
3. Habitat of collection: Concrete wall, suburbs 
4. Length (from head to gaster): 6mm
5. Color, hue, pattern and texture: Dark red/brown head and thorax, dark brown/black abdomen with a light yellowish strip, bottom of abdomen light
6. Distinguishing characteristics: Hard to tell since it's really small, moves really fast
 
I saw what a want to think is a Pheidole species have a nuptial flight couple of hours ago. It was collected around 21:00 local time.
Collected 3 of them, all of them still have wings.
But I've seen multiple species queens and alates today, mostly Lasius (missed to collect all of them).
 
Here are couple of not so great quality videos (first one has a ruler at the bottom):

Edited by dspdrew, June 21 2016 - 2:15 PM.
Embedded video

[schafro]

Ok one of three shed her wings. I was able to record couple more videos. Two of them are with ok quality, the one from the side is kinda blurry (I need to get one of those macro lenses for my iPhone). I've spend the whole day looking at species but I can't find anything similar to this. Here are the videos:
 





p.s Can someone let me know how I can embed videos here ?

Edited by dspdrew, June 21 2016 - 2:15 PM.
Embedded videos

[dspdrew]

p.s Can someone let me know how I can embed videos here ?

 

Just post the URL, and it will automatically embed it.

[Runner12]

This looks like Colobopsis, or one of the flat-faced camponotus species.  They live in twigs and the queens and majors have a specialized head that's flattened to act as a plug to the nest entrance.  Definitely not a Pheidole though.

 

Here are some similar looking North American species. 

 

http://mississippien...tm#.V2tE4jU71ME

[schafro]

Runner12 thanks for pointing me in the right direction. I'm like 95% sure its Camponotus Truncatus.

This is very cool since I always wanted a species that lives in wood (never build a wood formicarium before) and they seems to live in small size colonies up to 500 workers.

Does anyone has any experience with these kind of species ? Should I add some wood in the test tubes while they are founding ?

Only one of them shed her wings so I'm not sure if the others mated before I capture them.

Anyways looking forward to start a journal on these once they start laying eggs. 

[Runner12]

I've never kept them, but for pseudomyrmex another twig dwelling genus I would cut a twig longways into a half tube and drimmel it out if need be and then adhere it to some acrylic or something.

Edited by Runner12, June 23 2016 - 8:18 AM.