Meat ant nuptial flights?

Where and when are you finding queen ants? A section to share nuptial flight schedules by ant species and locality

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AusAnts
Posts: 121
Joined: Mon Oct 21, 2019 5:09 am
Location: Darwin,Australia

Meat ant nuptial flights?

Post: # 65730Post AusAnts
Sat Nov 23, 2019 8:38 pm

Hey, I was looking for queen ants at around 9am. I came across a Massive colony on meat ants. When I looked at the nest entrances I noticed there were male alates surfacing and resurfacing. I Also noticed the workers were building a mound of grass and leaves next to the nest. Are they preparing to have their nuptial flights?
2 x iridomyrmex sp Queen:15+ workers
2 x iridomyrmex pallidus: 40+ workers
1 x pheidole megacephala:2 queen 300 workers.
1 x opisthopsis Queen: 14 workers

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

Re: Meat ant nuptial flights?

Post: # 65775Post Hawkeye
Mon Nov 25, 2019 11:37 pm

Sounds like it, but might be a test run.

AusAnts
Posts: 121
Joined: Mon Oct 21, 2019 5:09 am
Location: Darwin,Australia

Re: Meat ant nuptial flights?

Post: # 65788Post AusAnts
Tue Nov 26, 2019 5:00 am

thanks. It was a test run i think, they didn't fly. I was looking forward to catching a few.
2 x iridomyrmex sp Queen:15+ workers
2 x iridomyrmex pallidus: 40+ workers
1 x pheidole megacephala:2 queen 300 workers.
1 x opisthopsis Queen: 14 workers

AusAnts
Posts: 121
Joined: Mon Oct 21, 2019 5:09 am
Location: Darwin,Australia

Re: Meat ant nuptial flights?

Post: # 66044Post AusAnts
Sat Dec 14, 2019 10:59 pm

I had heavy rain yesterday and it seems like a few hundred drones had surfaced (way more then the last few times i checked). I Also noticed that they were flying. But when i looked 1/2 hours later there was nothing. Could it be the large tempreture change that scared them off? or did they sense an oncoming storm thats brewing as i right this? I had a look around and found no queens.
2 x iridomyrmex sp Queen:15+ workers
2 x iridomyrmex pallidus: 40+ workers
1 x pheidole megacephala:2 queen 300 workers.
1 x opisthopsis Queen: 14 workers

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

Re: Meat ant nuptial flights?

Post: # 66053Post Hawkeye
Sun Dec 15, 2019 10:57 am

AusAnts wrote:
Sat Dec 14, 2019 10:59 pm
I had heavy rain yesterday and it seems like a few hundred drones had surfaced (way more then the last few times i checked). I Also noticed that they were flying. But when i looked 1/2 hours later there was nothing. Could it be the large tempreture change that scared them off? or did they sense an oncoming storm thats brewing as i right this? I had a look around and found no queens.
Quite possibly the storm

AusAnts
Posts: 121
Joined: Mon Oct 21, 2019 5:09 am
Location: Darwin,Australia

Re: Meat ant nuptial flights?

Post: # 66056Post AusAnts
Sun Dec 15, 2019 3:56 pm

hopefully, they will be flying this morning. I wanna catch some Queens of this species.
2 x iridomyrmex sp Queen:15+ workers
2 x iridomyrmex pallidus: 40+ workers
1 x pheidole megacephala:2 queen 300 workers.
1 x opisthopsis Queen: 14 workers

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

Re: Meat ant nuptial flights?

Post: # 66079Post Hawkeye
Mon Dec 16, 2019 11:58 pm

AusAnts wrote:
Sun Dec 15, 2019 3:56 pm
hopefully, they will be flying this morning. I wanna catch some Queens of this species.
Well keep us posted? :) meanwhile you're more than welcome to join our Camponotus Crew thread if you'd like to exchange ideas and experiences with fellow ant keepers.

AusAnts
Posts: 121
Joined: Mon Oct 21, 2019 5:09 am
Location: Darwin,Australia

Re: Meat ant nuptial flights?

Post: # 66090Post AusAnts
Tue Dec 17, 2019 4:31 am

Hawkeye wrote:
Mon Dec 16, 2019 11:58 pm
AusAnts wrote:
Sun Dec 15, 2019 3:56 pm
hopefully, they will be flying this morning. I wanna catch some Queens of this species.
Well keep us posted? :) meanwhile you're more than welcome to join our Camponotus Crew thread if you'd like to exchange ideas and experiences with fellow ant keepers.
hopefully it will rain over the next few days, the forecast has a 40-60% chance of rain for each day. I will join the Camponotus crewm as I would really like a similar species of Camponotus consobrinus But I think i will have enough Queens ants after the iridomyrmex purpureus fly (meat ants).
2 x iridomyrmex sp Queen:15+ workers
2 x iridomyrmex pallidus: 40+ workers
1 x pheidole megacephala:2 queen 300 workers.
1 x opisthopsis Queen: 14 workers

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