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Mating
Aug 29, 2011 17:04:40 GMT
Post by James O'Neill on Aug 29, 2011 17:04:40 GMT
Hi all, is it possible to induce mating in captivity?
James
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Mating
Aug 29, 2011 17:07:28 GMT
Post by Jenny on Aug 29, 2011 17:07:28 GMT
Not unheard of, but rare. A nest has to be very well established and contain both sexes.
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Mating
Aug 29, 2011 18:15:12 GMT
Post by TenebrousNova on Aug 29, 2011 18:15:12 GMT
Would it not be possible to warm up a room sufficiently, apply Vaseline to prevent workers/majors from getting out, perhaps creating conditions in which the alates will try and leave? Then collect the new queens? Sounds like a wild idea, but it's the most likely way I can think of. And you would have to be sure that foreign queens don't get loose.
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Mating
Aug 29, 2011 20:14:44 GMT
Post by Blem12 on Aug 29, 2011 20:14:44 GMT
Hello, As the above have said, it is rare but not unheard of. Maybe it would be possible if you heated up your bathroom and let the hot water run? This would cause the room to be hot (radiator) and sticky (hot water) which would create the ideal condition for them to fly off. You could put some white towels on the floor so that it would be easy to see and catch. I know, as Timenova said, a bit of a wild idea but who knows, maybe it would work. Blem12.
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Quah
Ant Photographer
Outstanding Ant Photographer
Posts: 226
Country: Malaysia
Likes: 10
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Mating
Aug 30, 2011 14:42:57 GMT
Post by Quah on Aug 30, 2011 14:42:57 GMT
I can't vouch for ants from other places but I dare say there must be similarities. Getting ants alates to mate much depend on the species. In some polygynous species such as Monomorium pharaonis and Tapinoma Melanocephalum mating takes place within the nest frequently, many polygynous Pheidole species too. Some species however will not mate until the alates are air borne. For example Solenopsis geminata and most monogynous Pheidole only mate in mid flight and you can't get them to mate on the ground. In most other ants the alates have to leave the nest and take flight before their mating trigger sets in. I suppose as a general rule polygonous species more readily mate without leaving the nest and monogynous species only after leaving the nest. But there are always variations so you need to know your species. There might be other factors involved too. For example because of advancement in DNA analysis, research on a species of ant had shown that the queen are able to select what her eggs produce whether clone of herself, clone of the father (the male she mated with) or offspring of her mating (carrying genes of both herself and her mate). I have always wondered about how in a polygynous nest the ants are able to determine which female alates produce queens in the nest and which produce alates that set off on the nuptial swarm to find new nest. Apparently new queens in the nest are clones of the mother and the male produced are clones of the father. Through this the ants are able to prevent in-breeding within their nests. The researchers are baffled how this is possible. The ant species in this case was Paratrechina longicornis. You can read the abstract of this research here at rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/278/1718/2677. I am wondering if this is only true for this species or is it also true in some other polygynous species such as Anoplolepis, Tetramorium and Pheidole. Here is the link to this ant in my blog (you might need to copy the link and paste it into the address bar): termitesandants.blogspot.com/2009/09/those-crazy-ants.html#paratrechinalongicornis. The attached photo show a queen of Paratrechina longicornis founding a new nest. Attachments:
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Mating
Aug 30, 2011 20:03:50 GMT
Post by James O'Neill on Aug 30, 2011 20:03:50 GMT
Thanks for that everyone. I gather that there is no point in gathering unmated males and females therefore unless you have the space (and tolerant partner/family members). And Quah, some superb info there, I've taken it all in and that's not the sort of thing I forget easily!!
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hedge
Leaf Cutter Ant
Posts: 70
Likes: 50
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Mating
Sept 11, 2011 20:16:01 GMT
Post by hedge on Sept 11, 2011 20:16:01 GMT
There might be other factors involved too. For example because of advancement in DNA analysis, research on a species of ant had shown that the queen are able to select what her eggs produce whether clone of herself, clone of the father (the male she mated with) or offspring of her mating (carrying genes of both herself and her mate). I have always wondered about how in a polygynous nest the ants are able to determine which female alates produce queens in the nest and which produce alates that set off on the nuptial swarm to find new nest. Apparently new queens in the nest are clones of the mother and the male produced are clones of the father. Through this the ants are able to prevent in-breeding within their nests. The researchers are baffled how this is possible. The ant species in this case was Paratrechina longicornis. You can read the abstract of this research here at rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/278/1718/2677. I am wondering if this is only true for this species or is it also true in some other polygynous species such as Anoplolepis, Tetramorium and Pheidole. Here is the link to this ant in my blog (you might need to copy the link and paste it into the address bar): termitesandants.blogspot.com/2009/09/those-crazy-ants.html#paratrechinalongicornis. The attached photo show a queen of Paratrechina longicornis founding a new nest. I've only heard of this before in this species: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_ant
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