Camponotus Pennsylvanicus Queen
Posted: Mon May 21, 2018 2:03 pm
I have, for many years around this time now, found large black lone ants in my bathroom. I'd identified them as camponotus pennsylvanicus from the queens last year, as well as some workers I found in my mulch during summer weeding along the side of the house. I've always moved the larger ants outside, as I'd figured them to be newly flown queens thanks to what I've learned from Mikey.
This year, I found one in my bathroom during the night and didnt have time to move her outside. So I put her in a little bottle I had with a lid that would allow air, planning on doing so the next morning. However, after sleeping on it, I had a curiosity about running an experiment to see if I was in fact finding queens and not a rogue exploring worker that may be on the large side. So, using one of my daughters empty and cleaned bubble wand bottles (practically a large plastic test tube), I got her set up with water and a bit of a large but cozy area inside a drawer in my kitchen.
The first day, I noticed her mostly picking at the cotton on the air side of the tube. (As i'm running an experiment, I want to kind of keep an eye on her so I check her a few times a day, being careful not to disturb the tube when I gently open the drawer.) The second day she was mostly just chilling, her antennae sensing the air. On the third day however, I got my verification. Three tiny white eggs. I'd have missed them if I wasnt use to looking for minuscule, tiny things from past employment.
Now she has a slightly larger ball of eggs, so I started wondering about her future. I'm planning on keeping her safely in the tube until she has her first 10-20 workers as per the instructions from AntsCanada, but while I know she doesn't need food at first, I was curious about when I should start planning her feeding schedule? Could I substitute syrup for the honey so long as its still the small drop from a toothpick? I have plenty of natural bugs around my house to catch for her, as we do not use pesticides, but when should I start planning on feeding her them? Or would I be able to give her a small droplet of a protein shake my husband uses, as her protein intake? I'm willing to experiment with her diet, however I don't want to possibly cause her any lasting damage, which is why I ask about the potential of the shake before hand.
When she does have her workers, I'm considering releasing them out in our woods where we have an old stump. Seeing as I'm in Michigan, I want to make sure I do it at a safe time before they should be hibernating for winter. Any suggestions or ideas when this might be from experienced owners?
I'd love to hear thoughts about this, as well as discussions on the diet potentials. Thanks.
This year, I found one in my bathroom during the night and didnt have time to move her outside. So I put her in a little bottle I had with a lid that would allow air, planning on doing so the next morning. However, after sleeping on it, I had a curiosity about running an experiment to see if I was in fact finding queens and not a rogue exploring worker that may be on the large side. So, using one of my daughters empty and cleaned bubble wand bottles (practically a large plastic test tube), I got her set up with water and a bit of a large but cozy area inside a drawer in my kitchen.
The first day, I noticed her mostly picking at the cotton on the air side of the tube. (As i'm running an experiment, I want to kind of keep an eye on her so I check her a few times a day, being careful not to disturb the tube when I gently open the drawer.) The second day she was mostly just chilling, her antennae sensing the air. On the third day however, I got my verification. Three tiny white eggs. I'd have missed them if I wasnt use to looking for minuscule, tiny things from past employment.
Now she has a slightly larger ball of eggs, so I started wondering about her future. I'm planning on keeping her safely in the tube until she has her first 10-20 workers as per the instructions from AntsCanada, but while I know she doesn't need food at first, I was curious about when I should start planning her feeding schedule? Could I substitute syrup for the honey so long as its still the small drop from a toothpick? I have plenty of natural bugs around my house to catch for her, as we do not use pesticides, but when should I start planning on feeding her them? Or would I be able to give her a small droplet of a protein shake my husband uses, as her protein intake? I'm willing to experiment with her diet, however I don't want to possibly cause her any lasting damage, which is why I ask about the potential of the shake before hand.
When she does have her workers, I'm considering releasing them out in our woods where we have an old stump. Seeing as I'm in Michigan, I want to make sure I do it at a safe time before they should be hibernating for winter. Any suggestions or ideas when this might be from experienced owners?
I'd love to hear thoughts about this, as well as discussions on the diet potentials. Thanks.