New Zealand Ant Queens ID

[WHTKalus]

https://photos.app.goo.gl/VcZ8J5jMQj7qXKcZA First small Queen with nanitics
https://photos.app.goo.gl/aT2CHMjgUeZHPp3u5 Second big Queen with shed wings
I found two ant queens this year.
One flew on me while I was taking a break in a vineyard this summer, she is very small, less than 0.5 I would say, still has her wings, when I got her she drank a lot and accepted honey and sugary water. Now she is with her nanitics and second generation eggs. I am doing trials to see what they like to eat a part honey.
The second is much bigger, twice as long and double the bulkiness, she flew on an open whey tank. She shed the wings the day I put her in a test tube and ate the drop of honey I gave her and drank a lot, she basically sits on the wet cotton in the tube.
I tried to find information about NZ ants, but there aren't, I don't even know if they are endemic or some alien species.
So I don't know if they are claustral or not, but I guess not, or they are just binge eaters...I can't find info about diet or size of the colony or anything at all.
Any help is welcome.

[cjerg9]

Hi there,

They are definitely looking like some kind of pavement/trail ant. Look a lot like the Iridomyrmex genus to me, particularly the first one. Iridomyrmex are introduced from Australia. They are known as “Australian black trail ants” and keep pretty easily like most pavement/trail ants. There are different species but all under the one genus are pretty similar care wise. I cannot seem to find much information but I believe they are fully claustral since they have such large gasters but feeding them after their first nantics appear wouldn’t be a bad idea.

[AM1C39]

Hear is a list of native ants from New Zealand:

• Austroponera castanea
  Austroponera castaneicolor
  Chelaner antarcticus
  Chelaner smithii
  Colobopsis newzealandica
  Discothyrea antarctica
  Dolichoderus goudiei
  Fulakora saundersi
  Heteroponera brounii
  Huberia brounii
  Huberia striata
  Iridomyrmex splendens
  Monomorium antipodum
  Nylanderia obscura
  Prolasius advena
  Rhytidoponera impressa

[WHTKalus]

I checked all the species you suggested me, but my two don't look like any of those.
I will see if I can get better equipment to take better and more clear pictures of them.
The one with nanitics I connected the tube to an "outworld" were I put different treats to see what they like, but they already didn't appreciate chicken...so I suppose it excludes "meat ants"?

[AM1C39]

The Argentine ant (Linepithema humile) is an invasive species that is not native to your area but does live there.

[cjerg9]

I checked all the species you suggested me, but my two don't look like any of those.
I will see if I can get better equipment to take better and more clear pictures of them.
The one with nanitics I connected the tube to an "outworld" were I put different treats to see what they like, but they already didn't appreciate chicken...so I suppose it excludes "meat ants"?

Meat ants usually eat the meat of other insects but it isn’t a very good name for them as they still will eat plant matter.

[cjerg9]

I checked all the species you suggested me, but my two don't look like any of those.
I will see if I can get better equipment to take better and more clear pictures of them.
The one with nanitics I connected the tube to an "outworld" were I put different treats to see what they like, but they already didn't appreciate chicken...so I suppose it excludes "meat ants"?

It may not be showing up on camera but do the larger queen have slightly red/brown colouration particularly on the head because I am staring to think the smaller one is definitely Iridomyrmex most likely Iridomyrmex bicknelli (if you look really close and she has red/orange mandibles and on the ends of her legs than she is definitely bicknelli) and I’m staring to think the larger one is pheidole sp (big headed ants).

[WHTKalus]

The small one seems all black to the ***** eye, while the bigger one seems to have some yellow on the legs, like hairs or tiny spikes.
I am being very busy at work these days, I hope to be able to take better pictures soon enough.

[WHTKalus]

https://photos.app.goo.gl/bcVv9TojKduhF62e9
These are close ups of the big one.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/9EuNxSdwtT5n3bSU6
These are ones of the small one plus a nanitic...already three runners of that colony...need fluon asap.

[WHTKalus]

...already three runners of that colony...need fluon asap.

Managed to get the runners back in, but can't find Fluon at the usual shops, anyone knowing where to find it in NZ?
Thanks