They have moved into the new home and sealed the door (but only after eating most of the food I offered) They choose the second most humid chamber of three options.
Last week there were four workers, now there are six! and more on the way.
You can track the growth of this colony from the day that I found this queen here: https://sauropods.win/tags/antqueen
The new colony has moved.
They left an egg behind so I decided to give it to my much larger (nearly 5 year old) Camponotus pennsylvanicus colony. I made a paper tool to gently move it. When they noticed the paper they seemed aggressive at first— but, then one ant gently picked up the egg to take it “back” to the nest.
One of this colony is now from a different queen and I will never know, her sisters will never know— even *she* will never know who she is!
I've hooked the queen and her now FOUR nantics to a new outworld with a better nesting option.
Her daughters are nervously exploring the new space until they get freaked out and run back to mom.
It's amazing to watch.
#queenant #antqueen #antkeeping #ants #petant #carpenterants #camponotus #camponotusPennsylvanicus
Her pupae have begun to hatch!
Here is a link where you can find her whole journey:
https://sauropods.win/tags/antqueen
Queen ant update!
Her brood pile is the same size as her body almost. She has five larvae in silk pupae ready to grow up to be nanitics (in about two weeks)
She’s doing great living in the fountain pen drawer. #antqueen #ants #antkeeping #camponotus #nycants
It is unreasonable that any bug could be this cute! when I open the drawer she always carefully picks up her eggs. She’s holding the most mature larva and it’s silk cocoon in the first photo. I guess she’s ready to run and start over if needed. What an incredible mother.
If you look back through this thread you can see how far she's come!
#ants #antqueen #antkeeping #carpenterAnts #camponotus #camponotusPennsylvanicus
Discerning a sense of size from macro photographs is hard. Camponotus intrepidus, for example, is one of Australia’s largest sugar ants at slightly under an inch long.
But did you see the little Pheidole ant at her heels?
The distinctively-patterned Caribbean Banded Carpenter Ant, Camponotus zonatus. Panama.
myrmepropagandist
Alex Wild