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Post by antsengland on Jun 11, 2011 18:58:57 GMT
yes the other pupa does have a callow ant... the callow ant is just curled up
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Post by TenebrousNova on Jun 11, 2011 19:00:29 GMT
Congratulations on the eclosion of Worker One! the queen is now opening another pupa & I think There is a callow Worker inside it ;D ;D Don't you mean cocoon? Pupae are those "naked" folded up wax-like ants you see of the Myrmicines between larvae and adult ant. I'm becoming very confused when you say that the queen is openong up a pupa. They are the same thing, even underneath the cocoon. My L.Niger once had bare pupae.
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Post by antsengland on Jun 11, 2011 19:03:17 GMT
cocoon, pupae... they both are the third stage of an ants eclosing process... I do not think it really matters... people already know that formica have a cocoon so you shouldn't get confused
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Post by antsengland on Jun 11, 2011 19:11:56 GMT
here is a pic of the callow ant... the queen(S) have around 70 cocoons in total Attachments:
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Post by TenebrousNova on Jun 11, 2011 19:19:16 GMT
I agree, it does look great. One thing, AntsEngland. You'll find it easier to post images if you first upload them to a image-hosting website (Photobucket and Imageshack are good ones), then copy the URL of the image between these [/img] tags. Then the image appears in your post.
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Post by antsengland on Jun 11, 2011 19:48:30 GMT
11 June 2011 - Queen open another cocoon, this time to find a worker....
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Post by antsengland on Jun 12, 2011 9:08:23 GMT
I am really annoyed this time because I believe the worker didn't make it.. I woke up this morning to find the ant to still be a white colour but also still curled up like it was when it was eclosed.... ... Could the worker still be alive ?
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Post by Wood~Ant on Jun 12, 2011 9:12:33 GMT
If it is still a fully formed pupa then it could still develop into an adult. The other thing is the queen may have ripped off the cocoon to eat it
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Post by Deleted on Jun 12, 2011 9:38:00 GMT
I managed to keep a rufa colony in captivity for two years but in that time it increased from about 300 workers to about 5000! They were kept in an enclosure occupying half of an 8 foot greenhouse and it was landscaped with plenty of interconnecting branches. A liberal layer of Vaseline was used to stop them escaping and it worked quite well but needed topping up every month. Feeding was not a problem at the time because I used to keep bees and used the comb scrapings and clumps of bee brood to feed them. They were kept in a glass observation nest which was supported on four short legs however they soon built a mound over the front of it. I managed to keep them using the observation nest by placing a 30 watt strip light over it and they used to bring all their brood near the light to benefit from the heat. I think the use of this extra source of warmth was a major factor in enabling me to keep them successfully. When they became too demanding I released them into my parent’s garden where they were probably the only wild colony of Formica rufa in Cheshire. Sadly the local blackbirds took to feeding their young with the workers and the colony was unable to sustain the onslaught and they fizzled out after about five years. I have often thought about trying to reintroduce some colonies to the last known locality that they were recorded at in Cheshire which I believe is Delamere forest. It would be interesting to see if they could reestablish themselves.
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Post by antsengland on Jun 12, 2011 10:03:35 GMT
do you have a pic of what you kept them in Peter?
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Post by Deleted on Jun 12, 2011 10:21:23 GMT
No sorry. I am referring back to a time before mobile phones, computers and the internet. I kept this colony just after I left school sometime in the 80's. It’s a bit difficult to explain: - The basic enclosure consisted of something akin to a thick polythene tent with one side missing. I lined the whole side of the greenhouse with thick grade polythene with any joins being taped up leaving no gaps. The front side was kept up about six inches high by a supporting piece of wood while the back side extended all the way to the roof of the greenhouse. Then I carefully pasted a layer of Vaseline all along the highest point of the polythene ensuring it joined up all the way around. By using various branches I creating an’s’ shaped interconnected branch trail which I estimated extended to about 20 foot which gave the ants a bit of exercise.
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Post by Wood~Ant on Jun 12, 2011 10:33:37 GMT
No sorry. I am referring back to a time before mobile phones, computers and the internet. What? There was once no Internet, Mobile phones or computers!!! Next you'll be telling me that The Beatles have split up! Sorry to intercede here, but can we please keep this journal on topic and about Formica rufa, as it tends to wander off the subject
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Post by antsengland on Jun 12, 2011 12:00:50 GMT
I have a forest near my house... I'll bring a bag with me to the forest and collect the leaves, branches, pine needles etc etc.... I can do this everyday to be honest. I'm not that busy .. as I have said above I have quite a large tank so they will be housed in there... how much moisture does the nest need ?
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Post by antsengland on Jun 12, 2011 17:31:57 GMT
just had a custard tart and fed some to my L.Niger, Myrmica Sp. , Formica Fusca & My Formica Rufa queens and they loved it
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Post by antsengland on Jun 13, 2011 15:42:18 GMT
I came back from school today and I glanced into my Rufa Tube to find a callow ant walking around ... here is a pic of it
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