P. Imparis - how long should you wait?

Questions from those who are just starting or considering getting into the ant keeping hobby. If you’re intimidated or confused by the in-depth posts of the other sections of this forum, feel free to post here, and we'll start from square one!

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mallonje
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P. Imparis - how long should you wait?

Post: # 36060Post mallonje
Thu May 17, 2018 9:40 pm

I caught a P. imparis back on 4/26.

How long should I wait before deeming her infertile?

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antnest8
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Re: P. Imparis - how long should you wait?

Post: # 36067Post antnest8
Fri May 18, 2018 5:42 am

how often have you been checking on her?

where did you catch her?

What is her setup?
Some of My Informative Sheets
https://forum.AntsCanada.com/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=19099
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    How To Identify Ants
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mallonje
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Re: P. Imparis - how long should you wait?

Post: # 36072Post mallonje
Fri May 18, 2018 8:45 am

Maybe once a week, I'd say every 6-12 days. (only three times since capture)

Northern Massachusetts. Walking across my picnic table one evening.

Standard test tube setup - wrapped in foil to block the light - in a small cardboard box that holds my test tube setups, in my media cabinet to provide heat.

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Batspiderfish
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Re: P. Imparis - how long should you wait?

Post: # 36085Post Batspiderfish
Fri May 18, 2018 3:55 pm

Try not to get swept up in the concept of fertility. "Fertility" is the catchall word that ant keepers often use when their queen fails, but no hobbyist has ever investigated if this. A queen may be sick, maybe the temperature or humidity isn't right, maybe she wasn't fed well enough or didn't develop properly, maybe she just isn't ready yet -- if we've done everything by the book, there's little we can do about it but wait.

Also, as an unrelated PSA, "infertile" does not mean the same thing as "unfertilized". Infertile means an organism is incapable of reproducing, while unfertilized means that an organism can reproduce, but never mated. Ants still reproduce without the act of mating, although the eggs are haploid (meaning, in this case, that there is no father DNA, just one unpaired copy of the mother's DNA where there would otherwise be two copies pared together). Males are the result of haploid eggs -- even workers can sometimes lay these.
If you enjoy my expertise and identifications, please do not put wild populations at risk of disease by releasing pet colonies. We are responsible to give our pets the best care we can manage for the rest of their lives.

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mallonje
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Re: P. Imparis - how long should you wait?

Post: # 36090Post mallonje
Fri May 18, 2018 8:54 pm

Valid points on all accounts.

You are correct I was overly lax with my fertile prefixes. I will endeavor to prevent such future errors.

However, as I am new to the hobby, assuming optimal (stress free, clean, warm, moist, dark) test tube setup - how long would you keep a fully alate specimen of the fully claustral species P. Imparis?

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Batspiderfish
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Re: P. Imparis - how long should you wait?

Post: # 36095Post Batspiderfish
Fri May 18, 2018 9:30 pm

Until she lays eggs or dies. She doesn't have much of a chance, regardless, if she missed the flights.
If you enjoy my expertise and identifications, please do not put wild populations at risk of disease by releasing pet colonies. We are responsible to give our pets the best care we can manage for the rest of their lives.

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