Newbie questions

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shioyant
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Sep 23, 2019 8:14 pm
Location: Kyoto, Japan

Newbie questions

Post: # 64380Post shioyant
Mon Sep 23, 2019 8:30 pm

Sorry if i'm not posting in the right place.

i caught my first queen this sunmer, she's a Camponotus japonicus (I'm a Canadian expat in Japan), but she's small for a queen. I had a hard time finding an ID for her but found help with Japanese ant keepers. I'm still worried about how tiny she is (6-7mm maybe?) compared to others of her species.

ANYWAY
I have her in a testtube set up, and I check on her every so often. She has one egg (I caught her 6 or 7 weeks ago) that she is very protective over, but she still has her wings. I'm very worried she's not fertile. But I also read some queens don't shed their wings till workers are born. And that she could be getting ready for hibernation which is why she only has one egg. If anyone has ant insight that would be great.

Lastly, in regards to hibernation, she has a lot of water right now and it's only her so it hasn't gone down much. Would it be better to move her now into a tube will topped up water before hibernation or will she be okay?
Also I read to put them in the fridge or something, but most places here in Japan aren't insulated and i don't leave the heat on so it's always cold, only few degrees above outside. Will she be okay in an unheated room?

sorry this is my first time and I'm so worried about her haha

Hawkeye
Posts: 1557
Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2019 4:38 pm
Location: Almelo

Re: Newbie questions

Post: # 64383Post Hawkeye
Tue Sep 24, 2019 1:22 am

Hi there!

First of all congratulations on finding your queen. Second I'd like to invite you to join our Camponotus Crew thread (see signature) where you can exchange experiences, ideas etc. With other Carpenter ant keepers. (Most of us have other species too)

Let me try to answer your questions:
It is not uncommon for queen to wait with clipping of their wings, so I wouldn't worry about that too much. They won't hinder her, and she won't be able to use them anymore as she is consuming her wing muscles as a food source.

I am not sure if your species hibernate, but if the temperature outside drops, that would be logical. You should probably aim to keep her between 5-10 degrees, no colder. It could very well be the case that she instinctively is postponing egg production until after hibernation. In the wild she would have to live of her own reserves during the winter and possibly show some semi claustral behaviour and forage for food in the spring, before laying a batch of eggs.

Quick question have you fed her at all? She might appreciate some honey (for energy) or protein (for egg production and feeding larvae) she won't eat more than she can, but she might like to fatten up before hibernation.

shioyant
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Sep 23, 2019 8:14 pm
Location: Kyoto, Japan

Re: Newbie questions

Post: # 64388Post shioyant
Tue Sep 24, 2019 7:08 am

Thankyou so much for your reply.

I did feed her a few days after i first caught her. She seemed really uninterested and these days everytime I check on her she seemingly is very stressed and I'm worried she'll run out of the test tube.
Maybe I should try again before october. Do you recommend a type of honey?

Hawkeye
Posts: 1557
Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2019 4:38 pm
Location: Almelo

Re: Newbie questions

Post: # 64389Post Hawkeye
Tue Sep 24, 2019 10:32 am

Preferably a biological one, which has the least chance of containing traces of pesticides

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