The AntsCanada Ant Forum's

I did study some of my dead "myrmica" ants in a microscope, seems I was wrong. Likely the tiny ants are a Leptothorax species, most likely the common Leptothorax acervorum, one of Norway's most common ants.

Question: is this a good candidate if i find a colony inside an acorn, a straw or reed of sorts around in the wild? I would likely be able to bring a full started colony of 100+ ants into an formicarium, babypowder barrier and place the entire colony inside an outworld?

Do you mean Temnothorax?

http://www.antwiki.org/wiki/Leptothorax_acervorum
No, Temnothorax do not appear as far north as I live, while Leptothorax is documented as being common in the species descriptions for Norway.

KimNorway wrote: ↑

Mon Sep 03, 2018 10:31 am

I did study some of my dead "myrmica" ants in a microscope, seems I was wrong. Likely the tiny ants are a Leptothorax species, most likely the common Leptothorax acervorum, one of Norway's most common ants.

Question: is this a good candidate if i find a colony inside an acorn, a straw or reed of sorts around in the wild? I would likely be able to bring a full started colony of 100+ ants into an formicarium, babypowder barrier and place the entire colony inside an outworld?

I wouldn't assume a colony of that species would grow much bigger than a couple hundred workers. So if you want to keep the colony long term, I would either catch a small colony or a queen.

Thanks. I did try find a colony, and found a tiny colony of some dark colour Myrmica, i am guessing some of the tiny monogynous 100-150 ant colony size kind of Myrmica...
I did put the branch in an tub with a barrier, and the ants basically just gathered all brood uncovered by lifting off some bark, and hid inside the wood. The ants I found now looks like Myrmica lobicornis or sulcinodis, seems to hide inside branches and basically don't go out much.
The next day I judged the colony I captured to be unfit for myrmicarium, and since I expected the entire colony to just gather in the centre of the log and die if i tried, i released it the same place I found it..

Yeah, Myrmica colonies usually don't get very large (except rubra). And just so you know, the correct term is "formicarium".