Citronella Ant Question

[Amstel]

I believe I caught a Citronella Ant queen today. I was doing a little research on them and from what I read, they almost exclusively harvest honeydew for food. Has anyone successfully kept these ants? Should I just release her or is there other food they will eat?

Thanks

[CANant]

That’s a huge topic. Citronella queens (lasius interjected) are social parasites. Meaning they need infiltrate and take over another colony (specifically another lasius I believe). They can not found a colony on their own. Here’s more info in the links below. The bad news is I don’t believe anyone has been successful to date. Even if they are successful integrating her into a colony she usually ends up dead for unknown reasons.

Don’t give up though. Maybe post a picture in the identifying section. They are sometimes confused with yellow field ants and others.
“ All species in the claviger group smell like citronella when disturbed or crushed. Lasius interjectus has a sharply pointed petiole like Lasius claviger and Lasius subglaber, but L. interjectus has many long, erect hairs all over the first segment of its gaster and only on the edges of the other segments of the gaster.”
https://www.antwiki.org/wiki/Lasius_interjectus

http://www.formiculture.com/topic/4737-citronella-ants-lasius-interjectus/

http://www.formiculture.com/topic/3252-much-ado-about-the-founding-of-lasius-temporary-social-parasites/