Worried about my queen

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magicisreal
Posts: 15
Joined: Mon Jul 22, 2019 7:17 pm

Worried about my queen

Post: # 64958Post magicisreal
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:24 pm

I caught her on july 22, and she laid about six eggs within a couple of weeks of catching her. The only problem is, they're still eggs. They haven't grown, and she hasn't laid any more. I don't know what the problem is, does anyone have an idea? She's a black carpenter ant as far as I can see, if that's any help!

LasiusSapien
Posts: 274
Joined: Tue Jul 16, 2019 2:37 pm
Location: Bristol

Re: Worried about my queen

Post: # 64960Post LasiusSapien
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:31 pm

magicisreal wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:24 pm
I caught her on july 22, and she laid about six eggs within a couple of weeks of catching her. The only problem is, they're still eggs. They haven't grown, and she hasn't laid any more. I don't know what the problem is, does anyone have an idea? She's a black carpenter ant as far as I can see, if that's any help!
i take it she's in a test tube set-up in a dark space and not disturbed to much? do you know the temperature-ish where she is if it's too cold could slow down the development speed of the eggs, just some thoughts off the top of my head
1x Lasius Niger - early forging stage - 60-100 workers
1x Messor Barbarus - founding stage - <20 workers
1x Camponotus Turkestanus - claustral stage - 1 nanitic + brood
1x Odontoponera Transversa - semi-claustral stage - no eggs

magicisreal
Posts: 15
Joined: Mon Jul 22, 2019 7:17 pm

Re: Worried about my queen

Post: # 64961Post magicisreal
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:33 pm

LasiusSapien wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:31 pm
magicisreal wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:24 pm
I caught her on july 22, and she laid about six eggs within a couple of weeks of catching her. The only problem is, they're still eggs. They haven't grown, and she hasn't laid any more. I don't know what the problem is, does anyone have an idea? She's a black carpenter ant as far as I can see, if that's any help!
i take it she's in a test tube set-up in a dark space and not disturbed to much? do you know the temperature-ish where she is if it's too cold could slow down the development speed of the eggs, just some thoughts off the top of my head
Yeah, I only check on her once a week. I put her in a slightly colder spot since it's colder outside, but that was only this month. Before I moved her, she was in a place that could have been cold, but I thought that it was around room temp...

LasiusSapien
Posts: 274
Joined: Tue Jul 16, 2019 2:37 pm
Location: Bristol

Re: Worried about my queen

Post: # 64967Post LasiusSapien
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:42 pm

magicisreal wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:33 pm

Yeah, I only check on her once a week. I put her in a slightly colder spot since it's colder outside, but that was only this month. Before I moved her, she was in a place that could have been cold, but I thought that it was around room temp...
i've found my carpenter ant like it around 25c/77f they seemed most active at that temp also have you try giving her a bit of honey or sugar water mine love sugar water so much i made a tiny feeder for them out of a small pipette
1x Lasius Niger - early forging stage - 60-100 workers
1x Messor Barbarus - founding stage - <20 workers
1x Camponotus Turkestanus - claustral stage - 1 nanitic + brood
1x Odontoponera Transversa - semi-claustral stage - no eggs

JustABitAntsy
Posts: 120
Joined: Fri Sep 27, 2019 4:10 pm
Location: Virginia

Re: Worried about my queen

Post: # 64970Post JustABitAntsy
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:49 pm

LasiusSapien wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:42 pm
magicisreal wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:33 pm

Yeah, I only check on her once a week. I put her in a slightly colder spot since it's colder outside, but that was only this month. Before I moved her, she was in a place that could have been cold, but I thought that it was around room temp...
i've found my carpenter ant like it around 25c/77f they seemed most active at that temp also have you try giving her a bit of honey or sugar water mine love sugar water so much i made a tiny feeder for them out of a small pipette
Lasius not to be off topic, but congratulations on your Campanotus' first nanitic
New antkeeper in Virginia currently doesn’t have a colony plan to start next Spring :lol:
Join the Forelius Clan https://forum.AntsCanada.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=15975

LasiusSapien
Posts: 274
Joined: Tue Jul 16, 2019 2:37 pm
Location: Bristol

Re: Worried about my queen

Post: # 64972Post LasiusSapien
Mon Oct 21, 2019 3:08 pm

JustABitAntsy wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:49 pm
LasiusSapien wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:42 pm
magicisreal wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:33 pm

Yeah, I only check on her once a week. I put her in a slightly colder spot since it's colder outside, but that was only this month. Before I moved her, she was in a place that could have been cold, but I thought that it was around room temp...
i've found my carpenter ant like it around 25c/77f they seemed most active at that temp also have you try giving her a bit of honey or sugar water mine love sugar water so much i made a tiny feeder for them out of a small pipette
Lasius not to be off topic, but congratulations on your Campanotus' first nanitic
unfortunately it the second the first one came with the queen but died a few days after the second one was born and the third has been stuck in part of its pupa for the best part of a week dont know whats going on there tbh
1x Lasius Niger - early forging stage - 60-100 workers
1x Messor Barbarus - founding stage - <20 workers
1x Camponotus Turkestanus - claustral stage - 1 nanitic + brood
1x Odontoponera Transversa - semi-claustral stage - no eggs

magicisreal
Posts: 15
Joined: Mon Jul 22, 2019 7:17 pm

Re: Worried about my queen

Post: # 64974Post magicisreal
Mon Oct 21, 2019 3:23 pm

LasiusSapien wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:42 pm
magicisreal wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:33 pm

Yeah, I only check on her once a week. I put her in a slightly colder spot since it's colder outside, but that was only this month. Before I moved her, she was in a place that could have been cold, but I thought that it was around room temp...
i've found my carpenter ant like it around 25c/77f they seemed most active at that temp also have you try giving her a bit of honey or sugar water mine love sugar water so much i made a tiny feeder for them out of a small pipette
I'll try giving her some sugar water!

AntDude2908
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Oct 17, 2019 7:19 pm
Location: Nashville, TN

Re: Worried about my queen

Post: # 65187Post AntDude2908
Mon Oct 28, 2019 9:52 am

"Black carpenter ant" is not sufficient. There are hundreds of "black carpenter ants", all with slightly different care requirements. First off:

Where are you located?
What species is your queen?
What temps is she kept at?
How long has she had eggs?

If you're anywhere in the South or Atlantic states, she's either Camponotus pennslyvanicus, Camponotus chromaiodes or Camponotus nearcticus.

NKantsalberta
Posts: 182
Joined: Wed May 23, 2018 6:48 pm
Location: Sherwood Park, Alberta
Contact:

Re: Worried about my queen

Post: # 65228Post NKantsalberta
Wed Oct 30, 2019 9:16 pm

magicisreal wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:24 pm
I caught her on july 22, and she laid about six eggs within a couple of weeks of catching her. The only problem is, they're still eggs. They haven't grown, and she hasn't laid any more. I don't know what the problem is, does anyone have an idea? She's a black carpenter ant as far as I can see, if that's any help!
Here in Alberta, both species I have caught (Herculeanis and Novaeboracensis) required a first year of diapause before the eggs developed further. year 2 I have seen 3 generations of workers.
GAN farmer for Edmonton and area, Alberta, Canada.

Facebook/Instagram : @NKantsalberta

Alberta Keeper's FB Group : Alberta Ant Keepers and Enthusiasts

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

Re: Worried about my queen

Post: # 65282Post Hawkeye
Sun Nov 03, 2019 3:08 am

magicisreal wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 2:24 pm
I caught her on july 22, and she laid about six eggs within a couple of weeks of catching her. The only problem is, they're still eggs. They haven't grown, and she hasn't laid any more. I don't know what the problem is, does anyone have an idea? She's a black carpenter ant as far as I can see, if that's any help!
Hi there!

First of all, do you have any pics of your queen? We might be able to help you identify her if you don't know her species. Generally speaking the larger the ant, the longer it takes for the eggs to develop. For my Camponotus species it could be up to 12 weeks. It does however require an environment that is suited for their development. You might want to try a heating mat, to raise the temperature to about 24 degrees Celsius.

With hibernation approaching quickly, pretty much all you can do is hope for the best and pray to the Ant Gods for your eggs to survive the winter. Then at the end of February or early March, start to gradually increase the temperature. For now make sure you feed your queen. She'll likely prefer sugars at this point and will neglect proteins but who knows. Try offering some cooked egg whites covered in honey.

Then settle her somewhere like a basement with stable 'cold' temperatures between 5-10 degrees Celsius.

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