Tetraponera Rufonigra

[shane]

First Log: 12.05.2018

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Going to give this colony a try but in winter there nest will have to be warm or never below 8 or 10c like most others I keep.

With this colony you will always have to use "Tweezers" There are very very aggressive and have a nasty sting which is same as a wasp sting,

And will attack anything even a elephant as size don't seem to matter with this species if you get with in 3cm as there eye sight is good

there will charge and bite, If there get a grip then there use there stinger.

Apart from there don't get close or touch as I will bite and sting even see you as a meal. There are a nice looking species,

There remind me of a primitive Dinosaur version of the wood ant or "Formica rufa" .

Heres some photos

This species are very good climbers and so fare the baby oil is doing well for a barrier but I do wonder for how long .

Colony seems to have a good 27 to 30 workers and around 7 larvae and 1 Queen.

With 1 Queen colony at its max will only be around 200 to 300 workers as there a small colony species.

So there can live in a big test tube with wood or paper towel bits in

 "NO Cotton with water as there will just chew thou it and drowned colony !!"

Or you can give them test tube size bamboo parts to nest in, There do like wood for there home and like a dry nest.

There will drink water from out in foraging tank and will pass it around in colony by gurgitation sharing or even honey water ect.

There do lick clean each other in nest too.

I'll post a video later.

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[Wood~Ant]

Very nice, where did you buy this colony?

[shane]

May 12, 2018 17:56:38 GMT Wood~Ant said:

Very nice, where did you buy this colony?

From British ants. I forgot to put that in log

[shane]

Log: 12.05.2018

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There seem to be setting fine, Just very messy with there garbage and a bit on the Benny hill side with some working going up ramp

and dropping off garbage bits only to travel back down to pick up that same bit again over and over, but think its stopped now.

Anyhow here's a video of them.

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[shane]

Log: 13.05.2018

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There all moved out there old home in to there new last night around 12am, Taken about 20 minuets when there fully moved

 and here's a video of them moving but had to edit most of video as it was long.

There was 2 workers that went in to moving mode as rest was doing there own thing with colony maintenance.

I was a bit shocked to see the 2 to then 3 workers even grabbing the workers and queen and carrying them to new nest even with force till there

gave up and curled for worker to carry them back to new nest.

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[shane]

Log: 15.05.2018

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There's ants are very good swimmers but can still downed which I found today   or playing dead.

Some how 2 workers had got in there drinking tower and drowned, As I removed there tower and got them out there was dead

life less, So I placed them in to a bin next to table there on as there was dead even looked closely to there body's for 5mins.

2 hours later with shock when I looked down next to bin the 2 works was exploring around bin fowling one another, I quickly got one of the empty tik tak boxes and got them in and pored them with a tab back in there foraging tank home.

Just to double check there dint escape some how and was new, As bin was empty anyway before I put them in as I thought there was dead

I checked and to my surprise there had gone.

Now I don't know if there was playing dead or exhausted from swimming or some how was stunned or shocked I don't know,

But if you think this species of ant ever like downed in there drinking water if you keeping them, Just put them back in foraging tank

even if there look dead and not responding, There will coming around at some point or when there dry out.

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[shane]

Log: 16.05.2018

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Some sad news about this colony as around 14 workers died over night which is a lot, This could be something to do with

tempter change in foraging tank, The workers in nest that was moving around dead insects for larvae to leach on and the Queen seem fine

but the workers that was foraging out last night seemed to have just died like asleep.  This dinner time, A worker was moving them to a corner and odd worker was placing odd dead ones on larvae in nest so there can be cannibal Rufonigra letting there larvae feed on corpses.

There nest has a heat mat under it but it seems I may have to use one under foraging tank too.

I hope this colony adapts and pulls thou.

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[shane]

Log: 20.05.2018

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I don't know what went wrong with this colony, All was going good till about 90% of work force started to die for no reason.

All I feed them was honey water and fly's and a small lotuses, All I can think off was the temp going a bit low at night.

I decided to section them off and hope they would recover in a test tube but it seems to be to late.

The queen died today as I don't understand why as test tube was around room temp of in the 20s but there dint adapted to there new home

I did read some where that Rufonigra can be fussy with been cold and warm but I don't think I'll try Rufonigra again with the rise

and falling temp of my room. All I can say is I will miss there fussy behaver in foraging tank and a bit to soon for them to die

as I thought there was setting.

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