aka ant: Aka's Camponotus chromaiodes (3. Jul 2010 04:53)

This colony has grown very well the last month or so and a great joy to watch. Since my last post on http://www.antstore.net/viewtopic.php?f=206&t=13904 the population jumped closer to 200 and many more on the way.
Brood is hard to count but are over 100 and growing. I'm happy to see a few new majors and a few more on the way. Overall everything is going great except when the workers decide to bury the queen under the brood for a few hours at a time.
Subscribe and watch in HD.

http://www.youtube.com/user/alexuks#p/a/u/0/Ci9m37vRefE

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/a0001-1.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/a0005-1.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/a0007-2.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/a0006-1.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/a0004-1.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/a0003.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/a0002.jpg

Raimund: Re: Aka's Camponotus chromaiodes (3. Jul 2010 08:16)

Very nice ants, definetly worth watching, already subscribed!

Best regards
Raimund

aka ant: Re: Aka's Camponotus chromaiodes (6. Jul 2010 03:21)

I have a few more pics for you to enjoy.

Guard duty.
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10004161.jpg

Team work! Yes they did pull the super worm into the nest.
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10004121.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10004091.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10004211.jpg

odesssus: Re: Aka's Camponotus chromaiodes (6. Jul 2010 05:00)

great pictures aka. what are you feeding them most of the time?

aka ant: Re: Aka's Camponotus chromaiodes (6. Jul 2010 14:08)

I feed them sugar water mostly. But their diet is meal worms, super worms,crickets, spiders, beetles, fruits, and sugar water.

aka ant: Re: Aka's Camponotus chromaiodes (12. Jul 2010 03:11)

I made another video with a bit more action better lighting and clearer then before.
Watch it in HD!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnCJImB6xTQ

I will write about the daily routine and the interaction of the queen with the colony. I watch this colony 2-4 times a day about 10-20 minutes total.
Her interaction with the colony and vise versa. She is rarely groomed and smothered by the workers. If someone didn't know anything about ants they would think she was a less active worker. She doesn't seem to get the royal treatment like other species of ants, bees, and termites are accustomed to. She tends to stay on or under the large brood piles or occasionally tending to the eggs. Her daily routine during the day seems to be sleeping 75%-80% of the time. One would think she was dead if they never kept a large colony. I notice smaller colony queens tend to be more active due to the lack of workers. When she wakes up she might groom herself and walk around a bit to get a meal from the workers then settle down and sleep again or lay a egg. Her night life is more of a mystery but it might not be much more different. After recalling everything I see its no wonder some Camponotus queens can live 20-30 years!

aka ant: Re: Aka's Camponotus chromaiodes (22. Jul 2010 16:00)

It was time to move them into a larger setup. The process was hard and stressful them and me. The first thing I tried was the light trick over night but they didn't move.
Then I took the colony out of the setup and placed them into a large bin filled with tubes to force them into the tubing. Then I connected the tube to the new setup and forced them into in. I noticed they didn't want to move into because I didn't clean the inside well and the colony was turning white from the dust so I had to take them out and clean the setup. The 3rd attempt worked and they settled in great but at a loss of 15-20 workers throughout this ordeal.
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10006241.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10006261.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10006571.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10006601.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10006521.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10006331.jpg

aka ant: Re: Aka's Camponotus chromaiodes (23. Jul 2010 17:42)

I gave them a boost last night from a huge colony.

Watch in HD.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfKrjNu7BHM

aka ant: Re: Aka's Camponotus chromaiodes (30. Jul 2010 15:41)

I Made a new update video of the colony in their new home.
http://www.youtube.com/user/alexuks#p/a/u/1/2O3t6BJxrCE

aka ant: Re: Aka's Camponotus chromaiodes (3. Aug 2010 18:13)

New workers are born every day since last week( around 30-40 or so). The 3rd batch of larvae is grow rapidly now and so is their appetite.
I've been wondering for a while why the workers stick small larvae on the pupae?
Enjoy.
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10007531.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10007571.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10007641.jpg
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http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10007612.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10007896.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10007931.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10007951.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10007816.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10007836.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d165/akaant/P10007631-1.jpg

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