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ProperName wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 28, 2022 11:31 am

I recently bought a 1 queen + 4 workers Camponoyus turkestanus colony online, but the colony I recieved include a Major in it. As I know, a small colony like this should not be able to raise a major. And also, workers are clearly bigger than they should be as the first worker generation of a queen.I suppose the seller send me a very weak colony that all workers died out and these are the last few workers remains.Is there anybody had been through similar situation? Or have any knowledge about that?Any advice would be very appreciated.

ProperName wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 28, 2022 11:31 am

I recently bought a 1 queen + 4 workers Camponoyus turkestanus colony online, but the colony I recieved include a Major in it. As I know, a small colony like this should not be able to raise a major. And also, workers are clearly bigger than they should be as the first worker generation of a queen.I suppose the seller send me a very weak colony that all workers died out and these are the last few workers remains.Is there anybody had been through similar situation? Or have any knowledge about that?Any advice would be very appreciated.

antsofTH wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 29, 2022 12:37 am

ProperName wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 28, 2022 11:31 am

I recently bought a 1 queen + 4 workers Camponoyus turkestanus colony online, but the colony I recieved include a Major in it. As I know, a small colony like this should not be able to raise a major. And also, workers are clearly bigger than they should be as the first worker generation of a queen.I suppose the seller send me a very weak colony that all workers died out and these are the last few workers remains.Is there anybody had been through similar situation? Or have any knowledge about that?Any advice would be very appreciated.

Honestly, I don’t buy Queens online as they can come with the risk you just mentioned. Also, why in the world are you buying exotic ants? Anyways, it is possible for the nanitics to become Majors, as mentioned by the user SYUTEO (Credit to him for the info). So, don’t be surprised. The shop owner most likely did not send you a weak colony. Majors can die in the same conditions as workers too. No, the workers did not die out. No, the colony is not weak and Yes, the Majors are very likely nanitics…
Hope to hear more about your colony.

ProperName wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 29, 2022 4:40 pm

antsofTH wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 29, 2022 12:37 am

ProperName wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 28, 2022 11:31 am

I recently bought a 1 queen + 4 workers Camponoyus turkestanus colony online, but the colony I recieved include a Major in it. As I know, a small colony like this should not be able to raise a major. And also, workers are clearly bigger than they should be as the first worker generation of a queen.I suppose the seller send me a very weak colony that all workers died out and these are the last few workers remains.Is there anybody had been through similar situation? Or have any knowledge about that?Any advice would be very appreciated.

Honestly, I don’t buy Queens online as they can come with the risk you just mentioned. Also, why in the world are you buying exotic ants? Anyways, it is possible for the nanitics to become Majors, as mentioned by the user SYUTEO (Credit to him for the info). So, don’t be surprised. The shop owner most likely did not send you a weak colony. Majors can die in the same conditions as workers too. No, the workers did not die out. No, the colony is not weak and Yes, the Majors are very likely nanitics…
Hope to hear more about your colony.

I am not a native speaker so please forgive about my poor English.
Technically,it is not a exotic ant for me cuase I curently live in China,Camponotus turkestanus do have distribution in Xinjiang (a province of China).
The colony has arrived to my place for a week and they consumed some protein which seems good.I use the same test tube set up as they arrived,I think I'll wait for another month to see if the queen lay eggs.
The reason I said it could be a weak colony is that a local dude likes Camponotus singularis very much and has really nice colonies told me that majors have higher priority when colony condition is poor, worker will always die before majors. Beacause majors need more protein and effert to raise and they are stronger to keep colony save form dangers in the wild. colonies live in place rich in food or other resource will have more workers to expand colony as fast as possible.So a health colony always has lower major/worker ratio(at least in Camponotus singularis) It seems like a strategy to increase the chance to survive and it's reasonable for me.Also I have never see any colony have major as nanitic myself.
I think wether a larva will grow up as worker or major most likely depend on worker's pheromone(one of many pheromone which specifically for larvae to determine what they will become).When a new coloy established, concentration of queen's pheromone is high,larvae will tend to grow up as workers.As the number of workers grows, concentration of worker's pheromone grows up too,larvae get chance to grow up as majors.This is basiclly why I think there is not much chance to have majors as nanitics. Nutrien is probably a cofactor, pheromone should be the main factor and maybe due to genetic problem,some colony could change the position of these two factor end up having majors as nanitics.
But these are all just my own thought and I didn't study so much about myrmecology so please correct me if I'm wrong.

ProperName wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 29, 2022 4:40 pm

antsofTH wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 29, 2022 12:37 am

ProperName wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 28, 2022 11:31 am

I recently bought a 1 queen + 4 workers Camponoyus turkestanus colony online, but the colony I recieved include a Major in it. As I know, a small colony like this should not be able to raise a major. And also, workers are clearly bigger than they should be as the first worker generation of a queen.I suppose the seller send me a very weak colony that all workers died out and these are the last few workers remains.Is there anybody had been through similar situation? Or have any knowledge about that?Any advice would be very appreciated.

Honestly, I don’t buy Queens online as they can come with the risk you just mentioned. Also, why in the world are you buying exotic ants? Anyways, it is possible for the nanitics to become Majors, as mentioned by the user SYUTEO (Credit to him for the info). So, don’t be surprised. The shop owner most likely did not send you a weak colony. Majors can die in the same conditions as workers too. No, the workers did not die out. No, the colony is not weak and Yes, the Majors are very likely nanitics…
Hope to hear more about your colony.

I am not a native speaker so please forgive about my poor English.
Technically,it is not a exotic ant for me cuase I curently live in China,Camponotus turkestanus do have distribution in Xinjiang (a province of China).
The colony has arrived to my place for a week and they consumed some protein which seems good.I use the same test tube set up as they arrived,I think I'll wait for another month to see if the queen lay eggs.
The reason I said it could be a weak colony is that a local dude likes Camponotus singularis very much and has really nice colonies told me that majors have higher priority when colony condition is poor, worker will always die before majors. Beacause majors need more protein and effert to raise and they are stronger to keep colony save form dangers in the wild. colonies live in place rich in food or other resource will have more workers to expand colony as fast as possible.So a health colony always has lower major/worker ratio(at least in Camponotus singularis) It seems like a strategy to increase the chance to survive and it's reasonable for me.Also I have never see any colony have major as nanitic myself.
I think wether a larva will grow up as worker or major most likely depend on worker's pheromone(one of many pheromone which specifically for larvae to determine what they will become).When a new coloy established, concentration of queen's pheromone is high,larvae will tend to grow up as workers.As the number of workers grows, concentration of worker's pheromone grows up too,larvae get chance to grow up as majors.This is basiclly why I think there is not much chance to have majors as nanitics. Nutrien is probably a cofactor, pheromone should be the main factor and maybe due to genetic problem,some colony could change the position of these two factor end up having majors as nanitics.
But these are all just my own thought and I didn't study so much about myrmecology so please correct me if I'm wrong.

antsofTH wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 29, 2022 12:37 am

ProperName wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 28, 2022 11:31 am

I recently bought a 1 queen + 4 workers Camponoyus turkestanus colony online, but the colony I recieved include a Major in it. As I know, a small colony like this should not be able to raise a major. And also, workers are clearly bigger than they should be as the first worker generation of a queen.I suppose the seller send me a very weak colony that all workers died out and these are the last few workers remains.Is there anybody had been through similar situation? Or have any knowledge about that?Any advice would be very appreciated.

Honestly, I don’t buy Queens online as they can come with the risk you just mentioned. Also, why in the world are you buying exotic ants? Anyways, it is possible for the nanitics to become Majors, as mentioned by the user SYUTEO (Credit to him for the info). So, don’t be surprised. The shop owner most likely did not send you a weak colony. Majors can die in the same conditions as workers too. No, the workers did not die out. No, the colony is not weak and Yes, the Majors are very likely nanitics…
Hope to hear more about your colony.

ProperName wrote: ↑

Thu Dec 01, 2022 2:16 am

antsofTH wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 29, 2022 12:37 am

ProperName wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 28, 2022 11:31 am

I recently bought a 1 queen + 4 workers Camponoyus turkestanus colony online, but the colony I recieved include a Major in it. As I know, a small colony like this should not be able to raise a major. And also, workers are clearly bigger than they should be as the first worker generation of a queen.I suppose the seller send me a very weak colony that all workers died out and these are the last few workers remains.Is there anybody had been through similar situation? Or have any knowledge about that?Any advice would be very appreciated.

Honestly, I don’t buy Queens online as they can come with the risk you just mentioned. Also, why in the world are you buying exotic ants? Anyways, it is possible for the nanitics to become Majors, as mentioned by the user SYUTEO (Credit to him for the info). So, don’t be surprised. The shop owner most likely did not send you a weak colony. Majors can die in the same conditions as workers too. No, the workers did not die out. No, the colony is not weak and Yes, the Majors are very likely nanitics…
Hope to hear more about your colony.

Fortunately,she laid her first egg this morning