7 replies to this topic

[William. T]

Yesterday, my brother put ice cream into our freezer which is a bare 30 or less degrees due to some malfunctions. When we pulled the ice cream out... we discovered Lasius workers......still alive inside! They must have lapped the sugar at the edge of the bucket or something. Some died, but a few were still alive! I released them. It seems Lasius have a cold tolerance. That explained why my Lasius did not thrive when heated. They always seemed agitated.

[AntLover101]

That is amazing

[dspdrew]

Lasius certainly do have a cold tolerance. They are only found where it snows too.

[cpman]

 They are only found where it snows too.

 

Really?

That would explain why there aren't any in Central Texas...

[Michaelofvancouver]

I have noticed this as well! I was freezing a few Lasius ants to feed my Camponotus, so I left them in the freezer for a few hours. I took them out and put them on the feeding tray, and within minutes they were crawling around again!

[William. T]

Yeah...... Lasius are almost inactive when it strikes the 80's and up.

[James C. Trager]

Lasius, Formica, Leptothorax & Myrmica are the classic cold climate ant genera of the Northern Hemisphere.

[Trailandstreet]

I kept my Lasius and the other local species in my attic. The temperature sometimes was below -5°C (23F) and the water in the Tank was frozen and they all doing well.