Found Paonia Colorado, April 16 2017 Camponotus?

[wolfwhowanders]

Found in a rotten Aspen log that was due to be burned. I broke the log apart looking for queens but couldn't find any. Caught about 100 workers though. Am pretty sure they're camponotus, but was trying to pin down species. Approximately 10mm long, though there are a few that are considerably smaller, Approx. 5mm. Definitely a polymorphic species. Not sure whatelse might be needed for a clear ID.

[Batspiderfish]

The angle at the ruler was important -- can we have that image with the same clarity as the others? A picture of the head, from the front, will likely also help.

[Martialis]

It is really not a good idea to collect mature colonies. There's a pretty darn low success rate, which drops to zero without a queen. The colony itself will have a hard time recuperating as well.