My busy Messors

[Wood~Ant]

Talk about digging for victory ;D Jen put our blue tank Messor barbarus colony into the warmth of our sunny south facing dining room window today, and this HD video gives a sample of just how busy they are making their nest, even if it does get rather messy at times

[shane]

Nice video Jen of you messor's doing construction work.

They must know winters on its way, as my messors too have been doing a lot of digging and moving sand mix out of there nesting tank and depositing it in tube, blocking there only exit, so had to clean it out 3 times now.

And looking at their nest you can see what they are doing with extending their chamber wider and only
leaving behind them stones at bottom that they can't lift



But they are messy at way they drop there dirt off, even some of workers that was clearing out tube gave up in end and it got blocked up.. again.

[Jenny]

Hmm, I don't remember them being this messy in previous years. The grey tank we have another colony in, love puttting any dead workers out on top of the roof for me to clear, cheek of it they then return back inside to the nest. This tank is now in the kitchen as of this afternoon, as they were making too much mess in the bedroom
I have had to put some sponge in the roof to stop them investigating any food cupboards and the other messor colony next door

[shane]

Sept 21, 2010 17:56:49 GMT Jenny said:

Hmm, I don't remember them being this messy in previous years. The grey tank we have another colony in, love puttting any dead workers out on top of the roof for me to clear, cheek of it they then return back inside to the nest. This tank is now in the kitchen as of this afternoon, as they were making too much mess in the bedroom
I have had to put some sponge in the roof to stop them investigating any food cupboards and the other messor colony next door

Will they try and bite through sponge

Think you maybe right about them not been messy thinking about it now, As My Messors, There bin bit is almost at center of tube and other workers then take shells and other bits from there bin to foraging tank to drop
off which is there second bin, But with construction with moving dirt out of there nest about 8 or more
and dropping dirt off in there bin bit of tube in a huge amount in days and other 2 workers that then try and clear out there bin and take it to foraging tank then soon give up, so I then have to clean tube out.

That sand mix thats dry blocking tube, I've put in a small plastic bag to recycle to use some time
in further for there next nest, Had to get all seed shells out of it though

[Wood~Ant]

Sept 21, 2010 19:01:39 GMT shane said:

Will they try and bite through sponge

It is too thick for them to chew through, although I'm sure they would if it was a piece of Jen's home made sponge cake ;D

[Wood~Ant]

Sept 21, 2010 15:50:21 GMT @antscanada said:

Amazing! Messor seem like such wonderful ants to keep!

Coming from much warmer places than Britain, such as Spain, Messor barbarus have their mating flights from late September into October, and up to and including early November to coincide with the rainy season in drier regions when the weather is a bit cooler.
Consequently they only go into semi-hibernation during December and January, as from mid February newly mated queens will lay eggs, although established colony queens tend to start egg laying around March when food is more plentiful.

This species is very common in the south of France, Spain and Portugal, and across the Mediterranean basin into north Africa; so they just love the extra warmth of our south facing rooms.
It can be fun finding a worker or two wandering around our breakfast cereal cupboard in the mornings, as know they are from our blue tank colony, so we just pop theses naughty girls back into their nest as they only go walkabout at night ;D