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Post by occultus on Dec 16, 2015 18:19:30 GMT
They're are now four cocoons + larvae. Still very hard to capture good footage but here is a small vid. You might be able to see a cocoon.
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indoant
Honey Pot Ant
Posts: 46
Country: Indonesia
Favourite Ant: Odontoponera transversa
Likes: 37
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Post by indoant on Dec 17, 2015 2:38:45 GMT
Keep up the good work and keep those videos coming. What are you feeding them?
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Post by occultus on Dec 17, 2015 12:09:44 GMT
Essentially I haven't fed them anything. The Queens have blocked of the entrance to their nest so it has been impossible to feed them.
I still offer sugar water but this is never touched.
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Post by occultus on Dec 31, 2015 1:55:00 GMT
Day 75 - The first worker has hatched!
The first worker has hatched today! I was just doing the feeding rounds before bed when I noticed the new arrival.
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Post by occultus on Jan 2, 2016 19:29:39 GMT
The second worker hatched out today. It took me a some time before I noticed that she was hiding underneath her mother.
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Post by Miles on Jan 2, 2016 20:33:09 GMT
on the left side of the gaster , is it normal that she has a yellowish line? it looks like a wound. There is nothing on the opposite side Good eyes, and I hate to agree with you, but yes, it appears to be a wound. Hopefully not life-threatening, and it may be corrected over time. Edit: After checking the dates from these posts, I think it's safe to say that the queen is going to be fine.
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Post by occultus on Jan 19, 2016 0:29:18 GMT
This little colony has been ticking over nicely. I have a new cocoon thats ready to hatch and a large larvae thats ready to spin it's cocoon.
I still haven't observed any foraging outside of the nest chamber. The workers have made a small entrance hole out of the nest so I'm not worried about them not feeding. (They'll figure it out)
They are nocturnal foragers, I leave them in total darkness all day and replace food every 48-72 hours.
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Post by occultus on Jan 29, 2016 21:28:26 GMT
Queen Iris(the winged Queen) has been constantly eating her own eggs before they can grow into larvae. I presume this is because she is potentially infertile. I cannot give up on her, so today I have created a new nest. It's allot smaller than her old nest. Feeding will be much easier and I'm hoping she will feel more comfortable here and less stressed. The holes in lid are where I will inject fresh sugar water, hydrate the nest and add/remove fresh protein.
This species doesn't fit inside test tubes or large boiling tubes.
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Post by Miles on Feb 3, 2016 23:46:50 GMT
Hi occultus. I just wanted to make sure you knew that Camponotus gigas is no longer the valid name of this species, and that it is now Dinomyrmex gigas.
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Post by occultus on Feb 4, 2016 0:50:36 GMT
Hi occultus. I just wanted to make sure you knew that Camponotus gigas is no longer the valid name of this species, and that it is now Dinomyrmex gigas. Thank you for telling me Miles! I shall update the name change to all of my videos and journals some time this week.
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Post by occultus on Feb 4, 2016 0:55:10 GMT
The two Nanitic workers plucked up the courage to drag a cricket into the nest tonight. It was nice seeing them enjoy their first solid proteins.
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Post by Wood~Ant on Feb 4, 2016 8:20:42 GMT
Hi occultus. I just wanted to make sure you knew that Camponotus gigas is no longer the valid name of this species, and that it is now Dinomyrmex gigas. The new renamed genus brings to mind some kind of prehistoric ant crossed with a dinosaur. Just imagine an ant as big as say a Tyrannosaurus Rex, now that would have an enormous appetite
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Post by occultus on Feb 4, 2016 12:12:14 GMT
My thoughts exactly mate haha. I really think the name suits them..Dino'myrmex gigas
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Post by occultus on Mar 1, 2016 1:17:17 GMT
Today the Queen and the older workers decided it best to cannibalise the (3 days old) third worker Sure am glad it wasn't the other way around though I don't believe its because of a lack of food, purely because I tend to overfeed. I offer fresh protein every other day left just outside of their nest entrance. (I have witnessed them feed without problems) The weird thing is that this ant looked healthy and active for the past 3 days( it did have a very attractive pale orange colour though and it was slightly larger than the two older workers). I do not want to sound ridiculous but it did almost remind me of a honey pot ants behavior. Just the way it stayed suspended from the ceiling for most of the time. I hope its a one off thing, perhaps there was an underlying weakness in the ant that wasn't visible to me. At any rate I shall increase the amount of insects proteins on offer. P.S As you can probably tell from the video, the big lazy Queen really seemed to enjoy this grizzly meal so at least she hasn't wasted the workers life entirely.
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Post by occultus on Mar 5, 2016 15:55:06 GMT
Four workers
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