Camponotus queens caught all died a strange death

Let us know of your ant colonies or queens that have passed away. We will grieve together but will also learn why your ants may not have succeeded.

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renaazra
Posts: 10
Joined: Sun Mar 10, 2019 12:32 pm

Camponotus queens caught all died a strange death

Post: # 56351Post renaazra
Sun Mar 10, 2019 1:24 pm

So around two years ago i had caught 5-8 queens that were all Camponotus. after a few months they all were laying and eating. a few months after that they began slowly one by one lost interest in brood ,motor control, than balance. Shortly after all perished. The next year I used New glass test tubes and had no fatalities thus far with five ant queens into colonies. What did i do wrong the first time?
The second set I bother about once a month but the other was every two months.
Both in test tube set ups.
Both fed organic honey.
Used organic cotton.
same species.

PwnerPie
Posts: 105
Joined: Sat Mar 24, 2018 5:59 pm
Location: Seattle, WA

Re: Camponotus queens caught all died a strange death

Post: # 56378Post PwnerPie
Mon Mar 11, 2019 6:53 pm

What protein did you feed them?
Keeper of:
1x Formica Pacifica
2x Camponotus Modoc
1x Tetramorium Immigrans
2x Lasius Sp

Founding:
3x Lasius Sp
2x Formica Argentea
2x Myrmica Rubra

GAN Farmer: 4 Colonies sold
Goal: Supply school science classes with colonies for learning.

renaazra
Posts: 10
Joined: Sun Mar 10, 2019 12:32 pm

Re: Camponotus queens caught all died a strange death

Post: # 56380Post renaazra
Mon Mar 11, 2019 7:08 pm

Cricket leg

Hunter36o
Posts: 376
Joined: Fri Jun 15, 2018 9:57 am
Location: Dublin, Ireland

Re: Camponotus queens caught all died a strange death

Post: # 56969Post Hunter36o
Wed Apr 03, 2019 4:50 am

Was their mold or could the temperature have gotten too high?
Is there more information you can provide in regards to the first set of queen's you caught?
Was the food wild caught or store bought? Tho it is not completely inpossible to have gotten a bad batch from store bought food. It's not common but not impossible.
Research is important before during and even after you have established a colony. There is always time to learn and to listen to others experiences. Live by this and your ants will thrive. Fail to do so and your experience may be brief.

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Antsanyone
Posts: 15
Joined: Sat Jan 25, 2020 2:10 pm
Location: Ohio, United States

Re: Camponotus queens caught all died a strange death

Post: # 66832Post Antsanyone
Sat Jan 25, 2020 2:41 pm

I had caught a Camponotus queen once (not the one I currently have) that seemed to be doing well, then she suddenly died. I didn't throw out her test tube setup right away, though, and when I came back a week or so later, there were a ton of tiny gnat larvae in there, crawling around and pupating. It was disgusting. I've actually had that happen with caterpillars before, the caterpillars pupated, then a few weeks later, a couple little holes appeared in their pupae, and there were a couple little red pill-looking things at the bottom of the jar. The pills hatched into flies a few days later, and I kept them for a while.
Wannabe entomologist
Current colonies:
Campnotus sp.
Dream ants:
Carebara castanea, Cephalotes, Atta texana
Calyptomyrmex, Discothyrea mixta, Melissotarsus spp.
Proatta, Rhytidoponera aspersa, Gigantiops ... actually, most ants.

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antnest8
Posts: 1438
Joined: Tue Jan 02, 2018 2:11 pm
Location: Detroit, MI

Re: Camponotus queens caught all died a strange death

Post: # 66840Post antnest8
Sat Jan 25, 2020 3:38 pm

there are some species of flies that are parasites and well, you know, kill queens. It's disgusting and sad.
Some of My Informative Sheets
https://forum.AntsCanada.com/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=19099
Includes :
  • Ant Care Sheets
    Queen Hunting
    How To Identify Ants
Goal is to become #2 poster on the forum

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