Polyrhachis sp?? and how to move a wild colony

[GijsSmulders]

Hi all,

A friend showed me his carpenter ant set up which intrigued me. I started looking up how to keep ants, set up, husbandry etc. when I remembered that I have a colony living in the control panel of my pool cleaner. That friend thinks they are Polyrhachis species, could someone confirm that and which species is it? See attached photos.

Now I am totally new to this and any suggestions would be helpfull.

I'd like to move this colony into my own set up. And eventually I'd like to set up the octagon tank (attached photo) as a habitat for them with live plants etc.

I don't know the size of the colony, if I tap the box about 20 ants pop out generally. I don't see them coming out at all at the moment, does that mean they are hibernating? And if so, should I forget about moving them now? I live in North-east Australia, in the tropics.

My first thought was to put the whole control panel in the small tank (it does fit), get them to set up shop in there and then later connect the octagon to it. I probably run into a few issues like how will the colony move out of the panel. In the small tank using light or temp might be difficult. Should I just set up straight in the octagon?

Then lastly, is this a good species to start with. Compared to other species I believe there is not as much known about Polyrhachis sp. so any input would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,
Gijs

[GijsSmulders]

Photos

*edit - can't seem to upload any photos, anyone tips for that

[Hawkeye]

Upload pictures on imgur.com. once they are uploaded, click on one of them. On the left will be a number of links. Copy the direct link.

Go to the forum to post a message, then find the little insert picture button and click on it. Place the link between the two 'captions?' < img > link < / img >

Repeat...

As to getting them to move, this might work:

-Grease the insides of a large bucket with baby powder and rubbing alcohol so it becomes slippery for the ants.
- insert the current nest into the bucket
- wait for the ants to find out and communicate that they are now trapped
- take a piece of tubing and grease the outside of both ends with the same mixture. (Keep a couple of cm clear at the very end, so it's easier for the ants to find the tube entrance) this should prevent the ants from using the outside of the tube to escape
- they will likely venture out through the tube into your tank and bring back news of the fertile grounds they discovered. You can probably lure a good amount of ants to travel through the tubes by adding some food like honey or a killed insect

- you might find that they will actually start to move in on their own at this point, but leaving the safety of their nest is a big step...
- if not you can encourage them by very slowly filling up the bucket with water and thus flooding the nest, forcing them out
- make sure you give the ants plenty of time to transport any brood, larvae etc. As you don't want to lose them in the water filling process

Let us know if you got them to move in?

[Hawkeye]

Oh quick question, you said you live in Australia, but looking at your name I have a strong suspicion you are a fellow Dutchman?

I want to keep a colony of carpenter ants, check out my plans for a setup:

https://forum.AntsCanada.com/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=14842

[Hawkeye]

I'd also be very interested in hearing what your friend with the carpenter ants think about the suitability of my plans for this type of ants

[GijsSmulders]

Yes a very Dutch name , I used to live close to Haarlem.

Thanks for the tips and I'll post those photos.

My friend only started his colony a couple months ago and is still learning heaps but I will show him your plans and ask him what he thinks.

[GijsSmulders]

It doesn't have to be Imgur, does it? Flickr should work the same way.

[Hawkeye]

No I only suggested imgur because it is easy to use. You can even use pictures from other websites if you like. Right click on a picture, save the location and then post that link the same way

[GijsSmulders]

[Hawkeye]

The pics don't show?