Massachusetts Flight Sightings

[zkublin]

Looks like L. Neoniger are prepping for flights. The hills are all opened up with enlarged holes, and can see alates moving around the entrances.

Nice! Thanks for the info, I will keep an eye out!

[noebl1]

Just checked and still grouping along entrances and not flown yet. Plus dragonflies are flying around, and no bodies found yet, so pretty safe to say still haven't flown Did find something else I'll need an ID on. She's pretty small, if she's a ponera, may let her go.

[Batspiderfish]

Fully-claustral Lasius usually don't start flying until 5:00 or 6:00 PM, in my experience.

[noebl1]

Fully-claustral Lasius usually don't start flying until 5:00 or 6:00 PM, in my experience.

Thanks! I'll be a bit more patient. Home sick with a crappy cold so can't really hunt much, but will go out later if up for it. This small queen I got (hard to keep her still for pics, so giving up) looks like Ponera pennsylvanica queen from pics (spot on, especially with the antenna and gaster shapes.) Pretty certain this is not a beginner species, so will probably let her go. If she chills out later tonight, will try to post a photo for actual id before I free her.

[noebl1]

They are just starting to fly right now from what I saw (looks like L. Neoniger and a couple other varieties).

@batspiderfish I found what looked like a L. Neoniger de-alate (the last pic) walking away from one of the colonies in the last pic. A bit odd isn't it or do multi-queen colonies sometimes eject a queen?

[Batspiderfish]

Does that queen have larvae? I imagine that it's possible for a queen that has mated to find her way back to the nest, but for this species I don't think she is able to stay there, so the workers probably drove her out.

[noebl1]

Does that queen have larvae? I imagine that it's possible for a queen that has mated to find her way back to the nest, but for this species I don't think she is able to stay there, so the workers probably drove her out.

No larvae, just sand in the pic that was picked up with her when I was getting her. The L. Neoniger are still gearing up from what I can tell. Each time i go out there's more and more staged at the entrances. The ones in the 2nd pic already all flew off (didn't look like L. Neoniger as smaller and more black in color).

EDIT: The dealate I found is vigorously trying to dig in the test tube and moving the pieces of sand around, going to put her in a test tube with water/cotton and see if she quiets down.

[noebl1]

Lasius of some sort flying right now. Male alates everywhere on the deck and surrounding areas.

[noebl1]

Ponera flying too. Just caught my first female Lasius alate as well, will post photos for I'd.

[noebl1]

Myrmecina, myrmica (I believe) and parasitic Lasius too (those are fast... seen at least 3 female alates.) L. Neoniger alates seem to be gathering at entrances as well. Ran out of test tubes... argh home sick today too so not much energy