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Post by Wood~Ant on Jan 20, 2017 8:10:43 GMT
It is possible occultus, although none of my other Asian Camponotus are effected by the presence of Oasis, and the sericeus do have fresh water which I have seen them drink. The brood seems fine and so does the queen, as well as the 2 workers, as they have taken in a defrosted fly and sipped a little honey water. Thanks for the offer of some more brood, I will PM you if I need any pupae. I have read that this species prefers a soil nest, but as they were thriving in an acrylic nest last year (the same one they are in now) I hope they will do so again. I thought the same about the C. substitutus when that colony dropped down to just 3 workers, but as that species has now risen up to 29 workers with plenty of brood; and in the exact same nest as my C. sericeus live in, I doubt that it is water seepage from the oasis. I know Ant-kit use sponge in their nests, but I found in the nest I had from them it made no difference, as a colony of C. xiangban I bought from them and kept in their acrylic nest died off very fast. In my opinion pure cotton wool is one of the best water retaining mediums, but even this can get dirty and grows black sooty mould. To be honest you just can' beat good old fashioned soil nests for ants, as most artificial nests have faults of one sort or another. ![;)](http://www.cosgan.de/images/more/bigs/c033.gif)
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Post by Zarbi on Feb 10, 2017 16:38:05 GMT
Sorry to read about the decline of the C. sericeus. Try keeping them in a test tube to see if the queen and her worker can raise more brood, then think about a soil set up rather than acrylic if they make new workers and the colony grows bigger again.
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Post by Wood~Ant on Feb 10, 2017 19:14:14 GMT
Sorry to read about the decline of the C. sericeus. Try keeping them in a test tube to see if the queen and her worker can raise more brood, then think about a soil set up rather than acrylic if they make new workers and the colony grows bigger again. Yes, I moved the remaining 2 ants into a test tube today. I have read this species does well in a soil nest, though last year it was thriving well in an acrylic nest; but things went downhill over the last 4 months. ![:o](http://www.cosgan.de/images/more/bigs/a093.gif)
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andavane
Nurse Ant
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Post by andavane on Mar 17, 2017 19:37:27 GMT
So sorry to hear this, this Wood~Ant! Which species was it?* Dabs your eyes with a tissue and gives you a hug.
One of my colonies looked in a sorry state today. I realized the bottom of the ytong nest had dried out a bit. Slowly hydrating after diapause. China. That's a long way for a Majesty to travel.....
* Ah, just saw it, C pseudo-irritans....
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Post by Wood~Ant on Mar 18, 2017 7:38:29 GMT
No chance of her making a miraculous recovery and rising up from the dead, as the workers have removed all of her legs for some reason this morning. Healthy workers are caring for the brood, but as it is now a colony with no queen it is doomed to die out. ![:o](http://www.cosgan.de/images/more/bigs/a093.gif)
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Post by Zarbi on Apr 4, 2017 7:59:45 GMT
Sad to read there is only one worker left, but hope that the 3 pupae will soon become workers and that the eggs hatch into larvae, as then this this colony could grow bigger.
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andavane
Nurse Ant
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Posts: 99
Country: UK
Favourite Ant: All Messor spp, Lasius niger, L flavus, Pheidole palidula
I Like: Peaceful Meditation
I Am: Medically Retired
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Post by andavane on Apr 14, 2017 13:45:31 GMT
Hiya, Wood, I saw the U-Tube vid with great fascination. What is this sp like regarding hibernation/diapause?
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Post by Wood~Ant on Apr 14, 2017 13:59:48 GMT
Hiya, Wood, I saw the U-Tube vid with great fascination. What is this sp like regarding hibernation/diapause? To which species are you referring andavane ?
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Post by TenebrousNova on Jul 18, 2017 16:46:52 GMT
Regarding the latest update to the C.substitutus (Light) colony: is that a drone in the first photo, left-centre? There's an ant with a very small head that looks like one to me, but I can't make out any wings.
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Post by Wood~Ant on Jul 18, 2017 16:58:55 GMT
Regarding the latest update to the C.substitutus (Light) colony: is that a drone in the first photo, left-centre? There's an ant with a very small head that looks like one to me, but I can't make out any wings. No, it is one of her first workers. She has never produced any drones since I got her, just workers of different size castes.
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Post by jeoff82 on Jul 27, 2017 9:50:53 GMT
What happened they seemed to be doing ok? Suddenly they are all dead?
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Post by Wood~Ant on Jul 27, 2017 10:47:10 GMT
What happened they seemed to be doing ok? Suddenly they are all dead? I really haven't a clue, as the queen had been laying eggs and they were eating; but for some unknown reason they just died out.
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Post by Black Ant on Sept 5, 2017 9:54:23 GMT
Nice to see the new colony of cruentatus is growing well.
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Post by Wood~Ant on Oct 5, 2017 7:29:14 GMT
There was a time when I couldn't keep a colony of Camponotus going and the success rate of this genus had a poor prognosis, but now this has improved and I find most species are thriving. I never seem to get C. ligniperda to do well, and my Black/Gold C. turkestanus are on the decline; but most others are filling up their nest space rapidly, so on the whole many of my ants belong to the Camponotus genus and do very well in acrylic nests. ![c014](http://www.cosgan.de/images/more/bigs/c014.gif)
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Post by TenebrousNova on Oct 6, 2017 11:27:24 GMT
Have you been trying the gold turkestanus on spiders and mosquitos (Although the latter aren't as common this time of year)? I've found that my Camponotus herculeanus largely ignore crickets/mealworms but will chew on smaller, softer insects. You could also give a tiny bit of fish flake or chicken a go, as I've found that fussy colonies like young Messors will show interest in it.
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