New from Georgia

[Nylanderiavividula]

I just wrote a LONG introduction after logging in and when I submitted it the page said “You must log in to post in this forum”... Talk about frustrating. I will try to paraphrase so that if it happens again I won’t feel like a popped balloon. I am new to ant keeping. I have worked in pest control for nine years and am not new to general entomology. I am a certified pest control operator in the state of Georgia with certification in WDO (termites) and HPC (everything else). I have been a beekeeper for seven years now and maintain a sideline honey business with my brother and wife (we run anywhere from 30-40 colonies). I am very excited to get into ant keeping and would like to know if anyone else is from the southeast who may be able to fill me in on when to look for what, queenwise. I see Solenopsis queens regularly and plan to catch a few just to try and raise them a little past nanitics just for the experience. Will HARD firebrick work for carving a nest out of?

[Nylanderiavividula]

Also, because I can see where the post may be misleading, I STILL work in pest control. Beekeeping is a sideline pursuit. In pest control I get the opportunity daily to teach people about the “creepy crawlies” they are so afraid of. I teach them how to reduce harborage and habitat in and around their homes to lower the populations of unwanted arthropods rather than reach for residual chemical insecticide as a first reaction. I also do my best to explain the various roles our multitudes of multi-legged (“polypeded”?) friends play in the environment.