Queen exited her nest for some reason?

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TbugTheAntMan
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Joined: Mon Aug 12, 2019 10:03 am

Queen exited her nest for some reason?

Post: # 63596Post TbugTheAntMan
Mon Sep 02, 2019 8:03 pm

So, when I caught my ant queen, I put her in a tiny, emptied-out shampoo bottle. Then, when I saw workers about a month later, I put that bottle in a jar with an olive oil barrier. I took the stopper out of the bottle so they could come out and forage. But then, a week later, I see the queen on the outside of her little bottle! Why would she exit her nest so early?

iCloud link to a picture. It’s kinda blurry, since it’s taken from outside their jar.
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0qAJu5qnH_-NF3gTCKY_2dDwA

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antnest8
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Location: Detroit, MI

Re: Queen exited her nest for some reason?

Post: # 63604Post antnest8
Mon Sep 02, 2019 8:24 pm

Do you know what species she is? She could be a semi-clausteral queen. Or she finds that spot a sutable home. :?
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TbugTheAntMan
Posts: 27
Joined: Mon Aug 12, 2019 10:03 am

Re: Queen exited her nest for some reason?

Post: # 63612Post TbugTheAntMan
Mon Sep 02, 2019 10:17 pm

Not exactly sure what exact species, but they’re definitely a Formica species. Maybe Formica Moki? Still not 100% sure.

TbugTheAntMan
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Re: Queen exited her nest for some reason?

Post: # 63638Post TbugTheAntMan
Tue Sep 03, 2019 1:17 pm

Ok, now her nanitics have moved in with her outside the bottle. It seems that they find the space UNDER the bottle a more suitable home than INSIDE it. I dont know why they would choose that, as they’re a lot more exposed on the outside of it there. Is there a way to get them to move back inside?

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antnest8
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Re: Queen exited her nest for some reason?

Post: # 63648Post antnest8
Tue Sep 03, 2019 6:16 pm

does the out world have a lid? if you open it up and add a barrier, micro-drafts might convince them to move, another way could be to turn on a fan in the room or something, these would probably be the best non-intrusive ways to help.
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

TbugTheAntMan
Posts: 27
Joined: Mon Aug 12, 2019 10:03 am

Re: Queen exited her nest for some reason?

Post: # 63700Post TbugTheAntMan
Wed Sep 04, 2019 9:19 am

I didn’t have to do anything. They moved back into the bottle on their own. They seemed to realize that they’re a lot more protected in there.

Hawkeye
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Location: Almelo

Re: Queen exited her nest for some reason?

Post: # 63775Post Hawkeye
Thu Sep 05, 2019 11:14 am

TbugTheAntMan wrote:
Wed Sep 04, 2019 9:19 am
I didn’t have to do anything. They moved back into the bottle on their own. They seemed to realize that they’re a lot more protected in there.
Might have just come out for a breather

TbugTheAntMan
Posts: 27
Joined: Mon Aug 12, 2019 10:03 am

Re: Queen exited her nest for some reason?

Post: # 63786Post TbugTheAntMan
Thu Sep 05, 2019 12:04 pm

It doesn’t matter anymore, since I moved them into a test tube and test tube portal setup.

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