Ants of Gambia (western africa)
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von miszt » 2. Jan 2008 19:45
woot! I'm off Gambia in a few hours! 
woot woot woot!
I'll be thinkin of u all....in the cold n rain of european winter hehe
I'll post a postcard photo of the sunshine and beach while i'm there
woot woot woot!
I'll be thinkin of u all....in the cold n rain of european winter hehe
I'll post a postcard photo of the sunshine and beach while i'm there
- miszt
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von miszt » 11. Jan 2008 06:30
ahh that woz an amazing expereince so many ants! no queens unfortunetly, but its the dry season, so wasnt really expecting any, heres a list of everything i found there tho...
Odontomachus spec (possibly troglodytes, but not sure), wow! these ladies are serious predetors, was unfortunete enough to be bitten, will defenitily be a little more cautious next time LOL
Lots of diffrent Crematogaster, all very small, and I didnt have a good enough lens to work out exactly what species, have a few samples tho, hopefully will work them out over the next few days
Camponotus sericeus, everywhere, and suprisingly espcially on the beach, i took some readings, which may be of interest to people on here who have just obtained this species, Surface sand temp was 36-40C at mid day, 10cm below 26-28C, and very damp, 50cm below 24-26C. These where nesting on the sand dunes on the beach. bear in mind that it is winter in Gambia now, summer temps would easily be 15-20C higher, and the surface temp of the sand could easily reach 50C, however these temps can quickly kill most ants, so be carefull....the majors of this species are superb creatures! very aggresive and defensive of smaller workers, was fansinating watching the interactions with one another, I did try to locate a few nests, in the hope I might possibly be able to collect one to bring back, but when I foudn the entrances I decieded to leave them be, as I suspected they where buried deep in the dunes
Many diffrent Ponerinae species, again pretty small, will try and do identifications this weekend, 2 I think are Pachycondyla spec, and one I am not sure as it is very small
A few very small Myrmecinae and Formicinae species, one in particular was very interesting, a tiny ant, with very long legs and antena, unfortunetly I had no hope of identifying it as it was far to small, and I dont have any samples here to look at in detail
it was very fast moving, an enjoyed my offerings of Egg at breakfast times, within a few minutes a 3cm square piece would be covered in a the tiny ants, each only with a body length of 2-3mm
I saw only one Oce weaver ant nest, and that was empty, but again its the wrong time of year, they will be on the move allot in the dry climate
The most amazing thing about seeing these ants in the wild, is that I would often find several diffrent species living and foraging next to one another, with very little conflict, the only conflicts I saw where the Odontomachus, who where enjoying the meals provided by nice fat cremetogasters and even the smaller Camp seri, I didnt manage to find any Major camps with the Odontomachus, probably best, as it would be a bloody battle I think, but I doubt that the camp would survive, Odontomachus have a formidable sting
so many ants! no queens unfortunetly, but its the dry season, so wasnt really expecting any, heres a list of everything i found there tho...
Odontomachus spec (possibly troglodytes, but not sure), wow! these ladies are serious predetors, was unfortunete enough to be bitten, will defenitily be a little more cautious next time LOL
Lots of diffrent Crematogaster, all very small, and I didnt have a good enough lens to work out exactly what species, have a few samples tho, hopefully will work them out over the next few days
Camponotus sericeus, everywhere, and suprisingly espcially on the beach, i took some readings, which may be of interest to people on here who have just obtained this species, Surface sand temp was 36-40C at mid day, 10cm below 26-28C, and very damp, 50cm below 24-26C. These where nesting on the sand dunes on the beach. bear in mind that it is winter in Gambia now, summer temps would easily be 15-20C higher, and the surface temp of the sand could easily reach 50C, however these temps can quickly kill most ants, so be carefull....the majors of this species are superb creatures! very aggresive and defensive of smaller workers, was fansinating watching the interactions with one another, I did try to locate a few nests, in the hope I might possibly be able to collect one to bring back, but when I foudn the entrances I decieded to leave them be, as I suspected they where buried deep in the dunes
Many diffrent Ponerinae species, again pretty small, will try and do identifications this weekend, 2 I think are Pachycondyla spec, and one I am not sure as it is very small
A few very small Myrmecinae and Formicinae species, one in particular was very interesting, a tiny ant, with very long legs and antena, unfortunetly I had no hope of identifying it as it was far to small, and I dont have any samples here to look at in detail
it was very fast moving, an enjoyed my offerings of Egg at breakfast times, within a few minutes a 3cm square piece would be covered in a the tiny ants, each only with a body length of 2-3mm
I saw only one Oce weaver ant nest, and that was empty, but again its the wrong time of year, they will be on the move allot in the dry climate
The most amazing thing about seeing these ants in the wild, is that I would often find several diffrent species living and foraging next to one another, with very little conflict, the only conflicts I saw where the Odontomachus, who where enjoying the meals provided by nice fat cremetogasters and even the smaller Camp seri, I didnt manage to find any Major camps with the Odontomachus, probably best, as it would be a bloody battle I think, but I doubt that the camp would survive, Odontomachus have a formidable sting
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von SteveUK28 » 11. Jan 2008 12:00
Miszt that all sounds amazing and i really cant wait to have a nice chat later about it Ohhh and to see some pics
Ohhh and to see some pics -
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von Necturus » 11. Jan 2008 23:14
Thanks for the Infos on the C. sericeus! I'd like to add though that the specimen beeing sold are not from Africa, but from Asia, where they seem to occupy a wide field different habitats, from wet to dry regions.
Sounds like you had a great time
Greetings,
Necturus
Sounds like you had a great time
Greetings,
Necturus
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von miszt » 11. Jan 2008 23:23
Yes this is true, however the c sericeus from Africa and Asia are the same species, not diffrent variants, so its a good guide, rather than the rough information currently available
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