10 replies to this topic

[Kevin]

Okay, well I kinda want a census of my ants, not really sure exactly what they all are... All caught in south jersey. I'll add measurements later. I know the genus of some but I want down to the species.
 

Pheidole

Unsure of species.

 

Pheidole 2

This one is much larger than the previous, also had 2 workers, one drowned in honey :c

 

Formica

Unsure of species.

 

 

Unknown

Very aggressive towards prey. I picked them up (workers) and they bite, but it doesn't hurt much.

 

Queen:

 

 

 

Workers:

 

 

Unknown

Similar to crematogaster shape but the gaster is more round. Found them around the same time (crematogaster and this queen's flights)

 

Crematogaster

 

Unknown species. I understand crematogaster is hard to ID down to the species, especially with blurry pictures like these, but I figured it's worth a shot.

 

Tetramorium

I know you guys are thinking, "Well, what the hell, Kevin! Tetramorium are literally the easiest species to ID ever." Look at these two colony's worker size difference. Maybe it's only a mm, but also one of them is a bit lighter, maybe a tint of red in them. Also, excuse the dirty test tubes. They refused to move, so I'll let them chose whether to commit suicide or actually move

 

 

 

Myrmica?

These pictures are too blurry to even know they're myrmica, but I'll throw them in for fun.

 

 

This one is noticeably larger than the other, maybe different species?

 

 

I also had a picture of a Camponotus and a red myrmica like queen, dunno where they went, lmao.


So, here's what I know:
 

- Camponotus pennsylvanicus. (not in here because I know their id)
- Camponotus ?

- Myrmica ?

- Tetramorium sp. E

- Lasius neoniger (not in here because I know their id)

-  Crematogaster ?

- Pheidole ?

I probably forgot one or two, considering I have over 50 queens

 

Also, if you care to id, It would be nice to number the queen, like which one is it from the first to last, and even better include the picture or quote.

Edited by Kevin, September 30 2016 - 2:53 PM.

[Kevin]

More pictures: http://imgur.com/a/M2ftV

 

I also just ordered a macro lens... hopefully I'll get better pictures.

Edited by Kevin, September 30 2016 - 3:03 PM.

[Canadian anter]

1&2 pheidole pilifera for second and stennama brevicorne for first?
3Formica subsericea or Argentea?
4 definitely aphaenogaster.maybe rudis,fulva or treatae
5.could be a Weird crematogaster but probably formic neogagates
6. I think I see some hairs so crematogaster lineolata.If it is bald then cerasi
7.both tetramorium spE.one is probably ahead by a generation and redish tetramorium happen occasionally but will be outnumbered by pure black sisters
8.the larger one is probably myrmica latriforms and second maybe rubra

Edited by Canadian anter, September 30 2016 - 3:11 PM.

[Salmon]

1&2 pheidole pilifera for second and stennama brevicorne for first?
3Formica subsericea or Argentea?
4 definitely aphaenogaster.maybe rudis,fulva or treatae
5.could be a Weird crematogaster but probably formic neogagates
6. I think I see some hairs so crematogaster lineolata.If it is bald then cerasi
7.both tetramorium spE.one is probably ahead by a generation and redish tetramorium happen occasionally but will be outnumbered by pure black sisters
8.the larger one is probably myrmica latriforms and second maybe rubra

He said the first Pheidole is smaller, could it actually be another species like P. tysoni?

[Kevin]

1&2 pheidole pilifera for second and stennama brevicorne for first?
3Formica subsericea or Argentea?
4 definitely aphaenogaster.maybe rudis,fulva or treatae
5.could be a Weird crematogaster but probably formic neogagates
6. I think I see some hairs so crematogaster lineolata.If it is bald then cerasi
7.both tetramorium spE.one is probably ahead by a generation and redish tetramorium happen occasionally but will be outnumbered by pure black sisters
8.the larger one is probably myrmica latriforms and second maybe rubra

The large pheidole looks like stennama, not sure about the little one.
Formica subsericea for sure.

The aphaenogaster species lives in rotting wood and I find them always in trees and logs.

I could see fromica neogagates.

Crematogaster cerasi.

Alright
I think I'll wait for my macro lens to do the myrmica.

[Mdrogun]

 

1&2 pheidole pilifera for second and stennama brevicorne for first?
3Formica subsericea or Argentea?
4 definitely aphaenogaster.maybe rudis,fulva or treatae
5.could be a Weird crematogaster but probably formic neogagates
6. I think I see some hairs so crematogaster lineolata.If it is bald then cerasi
7.both tetramorium spE.one is probably ahead by a generation and redish tetramorium happen occasionally but will be outnumbered by pure black sisters
8.the larger one is probably myrmica latriforms and second maybe rubra

The large pheidole looks like stennama, not sure about the little one.
Formica subsericea for sure.

The aphaenogaster species lives in rotting wood and I find them always in trees and logs.

I could see fromica neogagates.

Crematogaster cerasi.

Alright
I think I'll wait for my macro lens to do the myrmica.

 

Be careful about jumping to conclusions as far as species goes. Tons of species look very similar but are not the same. Crematogaster and Pheidole encompass a ton of different species. At the very least I would make sure you include cf. when naming these ants unless you are 100% certain they are a certain species.

Edited by Mdrogun, September 30 2016 - 6:22 PM.

[Kevin]

What does cf exactly stand for?

[Canadian anter]

I think this is...

[Batspiderfish]

Most ID's aren't worth it until the three components are met -- location, photograph, and measurement in millimeters. We'll probably need more photographs, from different angles, as a lot of these are dingy, out of focus, have shadows cast upon important features (i.e. Formica), or are taken from difficult angles (i.e. queen five, the supposed Crematogaster).

 

cf. is "conferre", roughly translated as "comparable to", to describe a specimen that is like a certain species, but not confirmed as that species.

Edited by Batspiderfish, September 30 2016 - 8:09 PM.

[James C. Trager]

I second batspiderfish's comments about information that should be provided and ant photography tips.

Still we can make some good guesses, in order of the pictures. Most of these agree with what Canadian anter already said, so you can take this a a confirmatory second opinion:

1 - Pheidole is actually Stenamma sp

2 - Pheidole 2 is probably P. bicarinata

3 - Formica is F. subsericea (F. argentea does not occur in South Jersey.)

4,5 - First unknown is probably Aphaenogaster fulva

6 - Most likely Formica sp.

7 - Crematogaster cerasi is the most common one in your area, C. lineolata also possible. (This is one of the best pictures as far as showing proportions, petiole and postpetiole, propdeal spines, etc.)

8 - Sheesh, I wonder id Tetramorium tsushimae has made it to NJ? Otherwise, the ones with smaller workers could just be a young colony.

9,10 - #9 is almost certainly a Myrmica. #10, inasmuch as I can see her, looks more Tetramorium-like to me. 

[Kevin]

Here's a better picture of the bigger pheidole: 

Edited by Kevin, October 2 2016 - 5:19 AM.