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Post by TenebrousNova on Dec 28, 2011 10:11:30 GMT
The two workers are now up and running, they've mostly lost their callow colour. A third pupa is now very dark.
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Post by TenebrousNova on Jan 6, 2012 10:09:37 GMT
There is currently about 15-20 eggs, eight larvae and a newly formed pupa. Insect food is still rejected so far, but seeds are taken, so are bits of ham. Foraging activity has increased a bit, there's normally about two workers out at a time.
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Post by TenebrousNova on Jan 7, 2012 15:22:00 GMT
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Post by TenebrousNova on Jan 11, 2012 9:57:47 GMT
I have tried them on two new foods. These foods weren't eaten by the colony in the past, but I hoped that they would give them a try now that there's more of them. Firstly, a sugar grain, which I put in front of a forager. She seemed intrigued but nervous of it, and would inch forwards only to recoil when she tasted the sweetness of it. If the grain is still there by the evening, I will assume that they're not interested. Then I tried a tiny bit of cheese, which went down well- a worker took it to the nest, where the others crowded around it. Cheese seems to be on their list of favourite foods, although I won't give it often since I'm wary of mold. There's a nice pile of about twenty eggs, some big larvae and one pupa.
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Post by TenebrousNova on Jan 15, 2012 15:47:08 GMT
All is still well. There's usually about two workers outside the nest. One of them got past the boundaries of the container and explored my windowsill when I wasn't looking. ;D I saw a few workers sitting at the bottom of a short tunnel in the corner. I'm not sure if they intend to do anything with it, since they can always expand their main chamber if needed. There's about three or four seeds in the nest, and a tiny bit of meat that I gave them earlier this morning. I can also see what looks like a small group of newborn larvae with some eggs. On cold days like this, I wait for the central heating to come on, then carefully hold their container over the radiator so that they get some warmth- but I don't let it get too warm of course. I do this from five to ten minutes. I noticed a very tiny worker in there, possibly a nanitic, dwarfed by the big media sitting next to her. I had quite forgotten how tiny the mini-minors are. ;D
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Post by TenebrousNova on Jan 17, 2012 11:47:20 GMT
The Messors seem to like apple. I gave them a little piece, and a worker began to suck the juices from it. After about half an hour of my watching, the worker went back into the nest and then the apple was brought in. Most of the colony were enjoying it the last time I looked.
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Post by TenebrousNova on Jan 30, 2012 14:15:32 GMT
The pupa is developing painfully slowly, but is finally a light brown. There's plenty of eggs. About thirty if I were to hazard a guess. Queen Kappa is still failing (Although I don't want to watch her starve to death, so I'm still feeding her. Eggs laid by her are given to the Lambda colony to avoid her from cannibalizing them). Because of this, I recently bought a newly mated queen from Bobdol. She should be posted today and arrive tomorrow or on Wednesday if I'm lucky. Once she is warmed up or wakes up on her own, she will initiate egg laying and thus a new story will begin. I believe that one of the reasons that my other Messor queens failed was because I checked on them too regularly. I'll be glad if I've learned from my previous mistakes.
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Post by IceWhyte on Jan 30, 2012 15:09:32 GMT
I think that was my main mistake too. They seem to be pretty sensitive to disturbances.
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Post by Jenny on Jan 30, 2012 15:27:51 GMT
Hope your new queen does well when she arrives, as Woods Q2 queen is laying dozens of eggs at present, so a fairly young queen like you're getting from bobdol should hopefully do fine.
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Post by TenebrousNova on Jan 30, 2012 20:33:41 GMT
Thanks. The Messors have been making a big mess today, as I found that they've been scattering seeds around the soil. Is it a good idea to let these seeds sprout in future (Rye grass) so that the roots will help hold the soil together, or should I continue to remove them?
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Post by Wood~Ant on Jan 31, 2012 8:15:48 GMT
Hi Timenova, please don't be offended by my request; but when you get your new queen from bobdol, could you start an entirely new journal for her to avoid any confusion with your existing colony? Thanks. You can remove any grasses that get in the way, but it does no harm to leave a few as their roots will bind the soil. Just make sure it doesn't dry out.
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Post by TenebrousNova on Jan 31, 2012 8:24:18 GMT
Sure, I'll make a new journal when the time comes. This one is a little expansive. Thanks for the advice.
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Post by TenebrousNova on Feb 1, 2012 19:29:48 GMT
The Lambda colony is still doing okay. The pupa is darkening, and a new one has finally formed. Tiny larvae are beginning to hatch.
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Post by TenebrousNova on Feb 5, 2012 12:08:42 GMT
I have found that there are now two small batches of eggs, one of which wasn't there before. ;D The workers are still happy to accept bits of food. The workers occasionally attempt to leave the container, but if I carefully put my finger in front they'll climb onto that instead. They're fearless little ladies. I have a small but hopeful feeling that the colony population will double during the Summer. I expect that the first major will be born this year if things continue to go well. There's always at least two or three workers foraging outside the nest.
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Post by TenebrousNova on Feb 9, 2012 9:35:14 GMT
A worker died a few days ago, and was carried to a corner. But from where one life fades, another will shine: the dark pupa will eclose either today or tomorrow. There's about eight large larvae that will soon reach the pupa stage, and even more newborn larvae mixed among the small pile of eggs. There is the aforementioned mature pupa, and a pale one. The colony is still sending workers around for foraging duties. I tried them on a pear yesterday, but they weren't interested. Give them a bit of apple however, and they will be all to pleased to accept it.
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