Please don’t forget small vials on any walks..

[NoviceAntKeeper]

Yesterday morning, there was a HUGE rainstorm. So I went outside in mid afternoon and found a few Solenopsis queens in my pool. I got them out, but when I went for my nightly ant walk, not expecting to find anything, I found a Camponotus queen. So I let it crawl on my hands until I got home (I didn’t bring a small vial with me since I’d been so used to not finding anything). Except, when I was almost home, the queen was hanging upside down on my hand. So I turned my hand, and boom. A gust of wind blew it right off and into the grass. And so I went home queenless once again..
(Not to mention the thousands of Argentine Ant queens attracted to my pool lights, which I saved and put into the grass of my backyard. I think it was a mass nuptial flight.)

So. Moral of the story: Never forget your container for catching queens, no matter how accustomed you are to not finding a queen. It feels terrible to lose a queen that’s actually quite rare in your area (fire ants pushed most of them out) and I don’t want others feeling the same. Please remember your containers..

[Antloverhuman]

Something similar happened with me too. I saw a queen camponotus at my school but i didn't have any vials so i just saw her disappear into the grass. After that i always have atleast one vial with me every day

[antperson24]

I have an older friend (in her 70s) who is big into insects, and she always tells me to bring vials everywhere I go.