Oecophylla smaragdina

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decaffeinatedpianist
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Location: Philippines

Oecophylla smaragdina

Post: # 39766Post decaffeinatedpianist
Wed Jul 04, 2018 3:09 am

So I have two queens of the species, one with a worker and the other with just tons of eggs. I was trying to find articles about their care, and I stumbled across many saying that the colony size was limited to the size of their container. This would be great if it were true, so is it true? I have a 20 gallon tank that used to house fish, so I could put them there. I know most of you live in temperate countries so you don't keep this species, but there's gotta be some experts in the tropics aside from Mikey. Additionally, is there any minimum size for the leaves that they build their nests in?
Keeper of:
Oecophylla smaragdina
Tapinoma spp. (?)
Pheidole spp.

AntsLuxembourg
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Re: Oecophylla smaragdina

Post: # 39770Post AntsLuxembourg
Wed Jul 04, 2018 3:51 am

I think the leafs should just be big enough to be rolled up or close enough to be attached with the silk, I guess. About the colonie size I've read that they can have +100k workers but it might just be that the total size depend on the space offered. Outside they got plenty of room so they can grow much bigger than 100k workers with no problem but poor queen must be pooping out eggs like crazy since they are monogyn. :lol:

Well I think you should try to offer them mosses and some plants with leafs of the size like these.Image

They should be big enough for them to nest inside. But remember. The plant can't grow too big or they might be able to escape. So you should at least double or triple check everything.
Doing some proper research is the best way to start an antcolony.

Need help or want to help? https://forum.AntsCanada.com/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=18153#p70566

Currently not keeping any ants anymore.

decaffeinatedpianist
Posts: 9
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Location: Philippines

Re: Oecophylla smaragdina

Post: # 40286Post decaffeinatedpianist
Sun Jul 08, 2018 1:57 am

Thanks!
About them being monogynous, I found this study:
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1440-6055.1998.tb01579.x
which says that out of 73 mature colonies surveyed, 71% had more than one dealate queen, some even having as much as six queens or more. It also notes that this is the first time that this was recorded in Oecophylla smaragdina.
Keeper of:
Oecophylla smaragdina
Tapinoma spp. (?)
Pheidole spp.

decaffeinatedpianist
Posts: 9
Joined: Wed Jun 06, 2018 9:42 pm
Location: Philippines

Re: Oecophylla smaragdina

Post: # 41363Post decaffeinatedpianist
Mon Jul 16, 2018 7:03 am

My small colony (7 workers last count) has accepted a new queen that I placed in their foraging area. At first there was a small skirmish but then they settled down. The new queen has already moved her brood with the others, and I observed the workers feeding both queens.

Here's a picture of them side-by-side in the test tube (enhanced to see them better). I guess this means that this species goes beyond pleometrosis in captivity? Has anyone else had success with a polygynous colony?

https://photos.app.goo.gl/wF335a46xR2hWMQr6
Keeper of:
Oecophylla smaragdina
Tapinoma spp. (?)
Pheidole spp.

eejayandeuan
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Joined: Mon Jun 04, 2018 8:57 pm
Location: Iloilo City

Re: Oecophylla smaragdina

Post: # 50541Post eejayandeuan
Mon Sep 17, 2018 10:17 am

Hi! I'm Eric from the Philippines. I caught my first weaver ant queen two months ago, and now it has around 7 nanitics. 5 days ago I released the young colony from its container into a small pot with a ficus maclellandii plant. They're doing great so far with the open setup. I just placed a barrier around the edges of the pot and feed them with feeder roaches and raw honey. Here's a short video.

https://youtu.be/a2muSTEVZw0

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