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Queen ID request Tucson, AZ 07/17/2018


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5 replies to this topic

#1 Offline giraffedom - Posted July 17 2018 - 9:44 AM

giraffedom

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1. Collected in a city park in Tucson Arizona.

2. Collected 07/17/2018
3. Urban desert scrub habitat. Collected around a foraging colony of Solenopsis sp. ants, and her color made her stand out.
4. 6mm
5. Red orange head/thorax color with slightly lighter orange gaster, very shiny, brown stripes and small yellow hairs on the gaster.
6. Round heart-shaped head, two petiole nodes. 
7. Readily dove and stayed underwater until coaxed out.
8. No nest found.

9. Flew morning 07/17/18

 

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#2 Offline Miles - Posted July 17 2018 - 9:57 AM

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Looks to be a Pheidole queen. She's beautiful!


PhD Student & NSF Graduate Research Fellow | University of Florida Dept. of Entomology & Nematology - Lucky Ant Lab 

 

Founder & Director of The Ant Network. Ant keeper since 2009. Insect ecologist and science communicator. He/Him.


#3 Offline Zeiss - Posted July 17 2018 - 10:40 AM

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Looks to be a Pheidole queen. She's beautiful!

I don't believe so, she really looks like she has a Solenopsis body structure, but I'm not sure of the species.  Could be a light colored form of S. xyloni.  What makes it look like a Pheidole to you?



#4 Offline Miles - Posted July 17 2018 - 10:59 AM

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Looks to be a Pheidole queen. She's beautiful!

I don't believe so, she really looks like she has a Solenopsis body structure, but I'm not sure of the species.  Could be a light colored form of S. xyloni.  What makes it look like a Pheidole to you?

 

I'm glad you caught me on this. I agree, it's likely Solenopsis, possibly Solenopsis amblychila or S. xyloni.


PhD Student & NSF Graduate Research Fellow | University of Florida Dept. of Entomology & Nematology - Lucky Ant Lab 

 

Founder & Director of The Ant Network. Ant keeper since 2009. Insect ecologist and science communicator. He/Him.


#5 Offline giraffedom - Posted July 17 2018 - 11:20 AM

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Thanks guys! After looking at some photos online, I agree with you both. S. amblychila is the best visual match to me, but could be S. xyloni. Her heart-shaped head makes me lean towards the former.



#6 Offline Zeiss - Posted July 17 2018 - 11:43 AM

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Thanks guys! After looking at some photos online, I agree with you both. S. amblychila is the best visual match to me, but could be S. xyloni. Her heart-shaped head makes me lean towards the former.

I wouldn't say it's S. amblychila, they look more like a tiny Pogonomyrmex.  


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