The AntsCanada Ant Forum's

I was just out cycling when I saw an ant tunnel leading under a rock, and thought that it might be a cholosteral chamber. Sure enough, there was a queen under there. I put her in a container with some sand, a couple rocks, and some moist cotton after taking the pictures so that she feels at home.

ID Pictures: http://imgur.com/gallery/zmov9

It looks sort of like a male to me but we will need closer pics

I don't think that it's a male because I found it in a cholosteral chamber.

O really, wow

If this does turn out to actually be queen, I wonder if it's a new species.

Aphaenogaster sp. male. I'm guessing that was a part of his mother nest or else he was just taking shelter there.

averagebilly wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 19, 2017 2:18 pm

I don't think that it's a male because I found it in a cholosteral chamber.

Were there any workers in it? If so, how many? If there were a lot of workers poring out of the nest, then it was probably a male. If there were brood and a few workers or just brood it was probably a queen. If it is a queen, my best guess would be Harpagoxenus sp.

Batspiderfish wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 19, 2017 9:24 pm

Aphaenogaster sp. male. I'm guessing that was a part of his mother nest or else he was just taking shelter there.

I think that once a male leaves a nest, it either mates and dies, or fails to find a mate and dies. I don't think it would dig all the way under a rock just for shelter. And if it was a male, there would be at least a few workers around it guarding it. Ants can be very territorial when it comes to their elates.

That’s certainly a male ant.

AntsDakota wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 20, 2018 5:37 pm

averagebilly wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 19, 2017 2:18 pm

I don't think that it's a male because I found it in a cholosteral chamber.

Were there any workers in it? If so, how many? If there were a lot of workers poring out of the nest, then it was probably a male. If there were brood and a few workers or just brood it was probably a queen. If it is a queen, my best guess would be Harpagoxenus sp.

No, it was just the male, but another ant was trying to dig under the rock, too. So, maybe, it was mating with that queen.