[Timenova] Lasius Flavus

[Wood~Ant]

When you think about it logically, Lasius flavus make soil mounds and are mainly underground foragers, so personally I would go with keeping them in some kind of soil based set up. Getting these ants to forage for food on the surface may be tricky, but if kept in a fairly dark or shaded place they should learn to search for food.
I have never found mould or fungus to be a problem with these ants, it's just their feeding that has always been my main cause for concern.

[TenebrousNova]

(Log 28)

Bearing your advice in mind, I prepared a soil set up and let them loose.

Within a minute of the lid being taken off, the tiny golden workers began to explore their new territory with a surprising confidence.

This was taken this morning.

I did not expect them to complete their move so soon, but they have a good sized brood chamber right against the side.
I hope they do alright in this set up.

[msi]

just a question how did you get three queens? did you catch them yourself?

[TenebrousNova]

I bought them from Wood shortly after the nuptial flights and kept them together. Unfortunately, the only species I find in my general area is Lasius niger, although I have seen about three Lasius flavus workers a few roads away.

[msi]

cool well I would like a group of three, I have the same problem I never see anything but Lasius niger.

I have one Lasius flavus but she not doing to good

[TenebrousNova]

(Log 29)

Been a while since I updated this one. Sorry about that.

The workers still appear to forage in the evening but by day, they stick to the nest. Unbeknownst to myself, they have constructed an additional chamber on the other side of the container, connected by a network of small catacombs.

The eggs appear to be kept in the original chamber, whilst the larvae and pupae (And probably one or more of the queens) are in the other. This species is quite a skilled nest builder, and it's interesting to watch the workers go through their little labyrinth.

[TenebrousNova]

(Log 30)

My dog was put down on the 25th, which is why I haven't posted much recently. For that, I apologize.

This colony appears to have brood of all three stages, although the workers are still very small in size. Nevertheless, they come onto the surface sometimes and are usually visible in the tunnels that run along the sides.
They appear to retain a healthy appetite.

I have not seen any of the queens recently, but they must be hidden somewhere.

[TenebrousNova]

(Log 31)

The colony is still doing alright, but not growing fast because they can be picky eaters.
This morning I spotted two of the queens by bronze gleams within the nest.

Small insect food such as spiders will be taken overnight I found, but larger ones such as crickets require a bit of thought on the part of the L.flavus. They began to dig around the cricket so that it eventually sank into one of the tunnels below, where they could dismember it. ;D

I have noticed that the soil around the entrances is raised and rounded slightly, and altogether a lot softer and finer than that of the surrounding soil.

I can see a number of larvae and eggs in the nest, I believe that most or all of the pupae have eclosed by now.

[TenebrousNova]

Until I dug into the compost of this container just now, I believed this colony to be dead. How wrong I was!

All three queens are still healthy and allied with each other, and there's a large number of workers- plenty of brood too.
I'm going to replace their compost with proper soil. It'll be a painstaking process but should be worth it.