ANTSTORE World of Ants

[CapitalO]

I put two winged queens and a winged male into my formicarium a few months ago, hoping they would mate in captivity (unlikely, I know). All three of them have been active since I put them in and today I noticed one of the queens is wingless.

Does this mean she has mated and is fertile or do queens sometimes shed their wings for other reasons?

I'm assuming the later, but I thought I would ask those 'in the know'

[KiamCameron]

She might be is the male ant dead ? Because after mating he dies...

[CapitalO]

I haven't seen the male since the queen went wingless. They appear intermittently, so its not unusual that I haven't seen the male in a few days. I'll keep my eye out for him.

[JimmyVe]

The male ant does not die after mating, they just don't live very long. Most of the time they die a few days after mating flight. You keep them in a farm so there is not a change they would have a done a mating flight, so i doubt it she would be fertilized, but in the world of ants everything is possible.

[tail__]

Many species copulate on ground, not in air, so it is not impossible. But, in the other hand, virgin queens sometimes also lose wings and even start laying eggs, but since they are unfertilized and new queens don't need males, they eat them before hatching.

[SteveUK28]

Well i did have a wingless Lasius Niger queen that i picked up last year.. and she produced nothing at all..

[JimmyVe]

Many species copulate on ground

In deed, i remember a few video's i have seen where species mate on the ground but most of them lived in the rain forest. Like i said, in the world of ants everything is possible.

I also had a few queen that never laid eggs, probably not fertilized ore just not strong enough. Could happen.