Harpegnathos venator 2018

[shane]

First: 26.05.2018

============

I got this colony of around 8 a week ago but no brood or anything and I don't see any queen with wing scars either so a gamergate

queen will be in charge but its hard to see which one is the egg layer.

I thought once there have eggs I would start up a journal but since I cannot see in to nest where they roost I think by now

there should be eggs in there.

Here's a video of them from last night feasting on a fly

There are big ants and have very good eye sight on anything that moves and starks there pray.

Remind me of mini dogs. There also have a strong sting and also jump,

Even if a worker is tame its best not to handle them or let them run on your arm cos there stinger are like 2 fin hairs

arched forward resting under there gaster which can accidently if there on your arm can catch on to your skin like door stopper

if there gaster are not raised high.

There use there sting when there grab pray by there jaws which curled forward makes there sting fold out like a curved needle.

There are very intelligent, But for now there nest bound and only come out early morning or at dusk when its almost going

dark, There don't like bright light much but like it when lights a bit dim or twilight.

There can get use to bright light thought, but you need to keep a light on for 24 7 to do that.

=============================================================

=============================================================

[shane]

Log:28.05.2018

===========

cannot see anything in nest  yet. Workers or queen still take in flys, As soon as there see me now there know dinners not fare away

as they wiggle there gasters watching me.

I am thinking of merging another small colony of them as this specie do link up.

For now this colony seem to be fine also they do poop in there nest for the larvae to cocoon in so there nest will get messy at some point.

===============

===============

[shane]

Log:20.05.2018

===========

Hard to take photo's of this colony with moving. But heres some photos of some workers out in open nest.

She's looking up at camera.

and some others.

=====================

=====================

[shane]

Log:29.05.2018

===========

Another small video, Part 2.

====================

====================

[shane]

Log: 30.05.2018

============

As I was feeding them today a worker decided to have a wonder around out of foraging tank doing jumps

as I was trying to take photo's

I see some eggs today.

Eggs with Queen 1.

Yes that's right there's 2 eggs showing on photo just to bottom left of nest and another 2 eggs to top right

I cannot get a photo of with the other worker or queen on them.

This nest may have 2 queens keeping apart in nest with 2 eggs each that's 4 over all eggs.

I don't know if its good or bad but I know at some point they may fight if that's so till there's only 1 queen and other bows down

or if not could both fight to death .

Hope things go fine if there do in end.

=============================

=============================

[shane]

Log: 01.06.2018

===========

There's girls are confusing, Now it seems they maybe another worker laying eggs but her eggs are different

to the oval round eggs.

Look like sausage shaped rise grains.

I do wonder if there could be drone eggs from a unfertile worker.

The eggs seem scaterd all under a corner of nest with other eggs in another corner.

Colony seem to be fine. I'm still confused if there 6 or 7 in this colony as I count 6 but at times I also count 7

I do wonder if I count a worker twice at times.

=========================

========================= 

[shane]

Log: 06.06.2018

===========

I don't know how long the eggs take to hatch to larvae with this species, But I think it takes along time but will see.

there's 7 all together but keep counting 6 at times with the workers  .

Colony are not interested in live food as much and seem happy with a dead insect once every 3 to 4 days as if there get over feed

there just leave it in foraging tank.

There does seem to be 2 queens in nest and I think the 2 go around eating each others eggs as the number off eggs I count keep

going below 4 then some days its back to around 6 or 7 eggs at each side of nest.

Colony: Fine

Workers: Poor 6 or 7 + Queen.

Brood: Eggs

Queen: 2 Fine

===============================

===============================

[shane]

Log: 10.06.2018

===========

Its finally happened, The 2 queens had a fight.

This morning 2 workers was following each other around attacking one another in foraging tank.

Non of them was backing down and was trying to sting each other. the other queen that was more dominant went back to her pile of eggs

in nest when the other queen was very unsettled and tacking everything she touched trying to get out of foraging tank.

I decided to quarantine her in a small septet container and see if she settles down as I think she may have been stung as her gaster

is not razed high like the other ants and more like dragged behind her.

I hope she recovers as I put her in a dark draw in a small cricket container with damp kitchen paper.

I do fear that the quarantined gamergate queen maybe damaged and I don't know if she will survive over night but right now

as with typing she still looks same trying to get out and very unsettled  I know when workers and queen end up when they like

that and it can be sad news.

===============================

===============================

[shane]

Log: 14.06.2018

===========

The queen I sectioned 2 days ago had died today along with a worker that's dyeing in foraging tank.

I Know the other queen would die cos of her damaged gaster from the attack from other queen, The other queen is still looking after her eggs and seems fine.

The worker that's dyeing in foraging tank on the other hand I do worry that she could have some virus or worm as her gaster is

twitching a lot like its trying to sting something but also pulsing a bit like a bees gaster does.

This puts numbers down to around 4 now  and I hope this colony don't have some worm or virus that only shows up in a colony after

about 3 or 4 months.

I'll be looking closely at this colony from now on.

====================

====================

[shane]

Log: 21.06.2018

===========

This queen seems to lay eggs but they don't seem to hatch into larvae   and also their food they leave behind seems

to have mites on them.

I know their food to begin with is mite free as I inspected them before feeding this colony.

So yesterday I decided to do a mite free clean up of their nest and foraging tank and also inspected the 4 remaining queen and workers.

All seems to have went well with cleaning everything out and had the remining colony in a clean test tube so I can inspected them.

The queen for now has no eggs but she will soon start to lay again but I fear that the queen may be infertile but without mites

interfering with left over foods and nest free of them, Only time will tell.

===============

===============

[shane]

Log: 23.06.2018

============

A worker died today maybe fighting or old age or mites.

Here's photos of dead worker, As you can see she's covered in mites . With out micro loop you would have not even noticed them,

But on close up you can see the hidden colony killers, This explains why some colours die out fast even when your doing everything right.

As you can see from photos.

This is up setting, All I can do is just have them around lemon bits but I don't think this will help them.

=====================

=====================

[shane]

Log: 26.06.2018

===========

Last night the gamergate queen died  and she had mites all in her jars which maybe the case of her death.

With the 2 remaining workers that was unsettled and split from queen now, I decided to try cotton buds dripped in lemon juice and water

and buy putting the worker between them and let them squeeze thou both cotton buds with the hope it brushes off the mites as they get tangled in cotton

as there force there way thou and the lemon juice water to fight the remaining mites off there shell and eyes and jars. Remember the eyes on a ant

are like the body shell so like some ants that bath them self's in formic aside, It should be safe.

So fare so good both are fine no stress and both are cleaning them self's. Both ants seem fine and the most of the mites seem to have gone

but there are still some around the eyes but I hope the lemon water has killed them and in time they will fall off as ants clean them self's.

With them been gamergates, I hope one of them or both become new queens. With looking at them today in 2 septet test tubes,

One already looks like she's making a nest but the other seems a little unsettled. I was going to join them both together,

But the both of them would fight or do that tug of war that could take hours or days that I dint want.

Just hope both will lay eggs soon to replace the lost queen and hope the mite problem now has gone.

PS: With both in test tunes I will keep an eye on the 2 maybe new queen and hope the mites have died and fall off them.

============

============

[shane]

Log: 30.06.2018

===========

Last of the workers has just died today, She was fine this morning then when I checked in afternoon just now she was

curled up dead .

I Had a look under a loop on her and she was still covered in mites. I am sad that this colony dint pull thou and was

a bit rough even for them settling in with 2 queens fighting for dominance and then the mites showed up why colony wort settling.

Seems the heat was also a haven for mite populations also which I blame for decline in colony.

I May try this spices again at some point but will also check for mites.

=================== End =================

=======================================