Possible Queen. Strange Behavior (although extremely small) Help!

Help with identifying the species your ants

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PotatoDelight
Posts: 24
Joined: Sun Sep 18, 2016 6:13 pm
Location: Southern IN USA

Possible Queen. Strange Behavior (although extremely small) Help!

Post: # 21226Post PotatoDelight
Mon May 15, 2017 7:39 pm

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Found this gal (guy?) when she flew onto my arm. Ran inside like lighting with my hand covering her. when i found my container she had escaped. i looked around in defeat. alas, no where to be found. i went upstairs and got a container ready (container had real big airholes) because obviously a nup. flight was happening and i wanted to go out for a walk. And I felt a tickle on the back of my neck. Instantly I knew it was this alate (queen?). Boy was that hectic. I also found a dead big ol' queen wrapped in spider webs on my grandparents house yesterday.

Anyway, Im still not sure shes a queen. She/he is extremely small for a queen or an alate (idk how big i dont have a ruler) and My camera wont focus in on it well for more than a split second so these photos are the best I have (out of 30ish)

After i placed her into a tube i check to see if she escaoed an hour later, and she started to squirm. no biggy I thought, and then she rolled up like a pill bug (rollie pollie) and started to nibble or clean or something on the end of her thorax. Thats either a good sign (she maybe recently mated?) or a really bad one. Anyone got any ideas or maybe this is normal and Im just paranoid.

Martialis
Posts: 1576
Joined: Mon Aug 08, 2016 5:30 pm
Location: Indiana

Re: Possible Queen. Strange Behavior (although extremely small) Help!

Post: # 21229Post Martialis
Mon May 15, 2017 8:17 pm

That's a queen, though I can't see her clear enough to ID her.
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PotatoDelight
Posts: 24
Joined: Sun Sep 18, 2016 6:13 pm
Location: Southern IN USA

Re: Possible Queen. Strange Behavior (although extremely small) Help!

Post: # 21231Post PotatoDelight
Mon May 15, 2017 9:12 pm

Martialis Thank you! Do you happen to know why she would be acting strangely

xTNxANTMANx
Posts: 416
Joined: Tue Oct 04, 2016 9:03 am
Location: Western Tennessee

Re: Possible Queen. Strange Behavior (although extremely small) Help!

Post: # 21234Post xTNxANTMANx
Mon May 15, 2017 11:40 pm

Honestly to me it sounds like normal behavior to me. I'm no expert but I really don't think you have anything to worry about my friend. Congrats on the catch by the way
Keeping:
Camponotus subbarbatus
Formica pallidefulva x2
Formica subsericea x4
Lasius sp
Tetramorium immigrans x2
Dorymyrmex bureni

Founding:
Formica pallidefulva
Unknown sp x2

Yestordsd287

Re: Possible Queen. Strange Behavior (although extremely small) Help!

Post: # 21332Post Yestordsd287
Thu May 18, 2017 10:51 am

Hey good catch! That quee looks a lot like my Brachymyrmex Sp. queen. When i caught mine she also curled into a ball and was like cleaning her gaster. Mine is aproximately 5mm in length and she has laid her first eggs. But im not entirely sure...

Martialis
Posts: 1576
Joined: Mon Aug 08, 2016 5:30 pm
Location: Indiana

Re: Possible Queen. Strange Behavior (although extremely small) Help!

Post: # 21333Post Martialis
Thu May 18, 2017 11:02 am

Not in Indiana yet. ;) I'm thinking Nylanderia.
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BleedingRaindrops
Posts: 156
Joined: Mon Oct 10, 2016 11:33 am
Location: Pennsylvania

Re: Possible Queen. Strange Behavior (although extremely small) Help!

Post: # 21549Post BleedingRaindrops
Mon May 22, 2017 10:09 pm

If you have an android, Go into the settings menu on your camera app and set mode to pro, then select the zoom function from the main camera screen and set it to manual. The latest update will enlarge the image for finer focus.

If you have an apple it should be similar instructions but I don't use Apple products so I can't be certain. Apple tends to have better cameras anyway.

If you want even better photos, you can purchase a clip on macro lens on Amazon for pretty cheap.

For best results, use backlighting (Queen should be between the camera and the light source) and hold the camera 2-8 inches from the queen.

Also her behavior sounds normal. If she's cleaning the tip of her gaster it's a good sign she's mated
Ants kept
Nylanderia sp.
Camponotus sp.
Paratrechina Longicornis
Pheidole sp.

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