Pro-bono venture of returning harvester ant colony

[yen_saw]

For the past few years, I have been helping University of HOuston ento students collecting Pogonomyrmex barbatus (Harvester ants) for their research. Some of the queen ants been able to grow into a nice size colonies after few years. So we have decided to return some colonies back to the place where we collected the queens.

We started to dig up the hole in the afternoon. It wasn't fun doing this under 95F with 80% humidity. A total of 40 holes were dug out.

I had the easier tool but still took me a good 15 minute to dig up a hole.

We marked each hole with a flag,, and returning later in the afternoon when the weather is cooler for releasing the colony.

The harvester ant colonies have been transfered into a 20oz soil- filled foam cup a week earlier.

Before placing the container into the hole, a hole is poked through the bottom so it won't accumulate water.

Placing the colony into the hole

Removing the lid, some harvester workers started to crawl out rather quick (Do not want to get stung by one of these, really painful!)

Placing the soil back to the hole

 

[yen_saw]

Complete!

To boost the young colony, i placed some seeds and oats nearby.

SOme other photos taken during the day

We will monitor the colonies from time to time and hope they will successfully establish a colony where we placed them. Harvester ant colonies have been under threat due to the ferocious invading fire ants. It will not likely bringing back the horn toad but it will definitely be a good sign to see more of them.

 

[Mime454]

Any tips on collecting queens? I love ants!

 

[aNisip]

Amazing work Yen! I was doing that with our native carpenter any specie, but I only released 5 young colonies...and they did very well!

Mime: Wait til their nuptial flight. A nuptial flight is when ants, termites, and/or bees send out virgin queens and 'kings' to mate...when it is their season for their nuptial flight, all of the colonies amongst a specie release the drones to mate in the air, -for ants -then the queen (sometimes with the male still attatched) will land back on earth and search for a new place to establish her colony...this is when you should find/collect the queens...if you need more details PM me...

Depending on the species of ant you are interested in, research when their nuptial flight is...

 

[yen_saw]

Any tips on collecting queens? I love ants!

Andrew said it...... it also depends on species and your locations.

Amazing work Yen! I was doing that with our native carpenter any specie, but I only released 5 young colonies...and they did very well!

Thanks. I hope at least some will form a proper colony.

 

[Rick]

You just backfill the hole in on top of them?

 

[aNisip]

It's almost impossible to 'bury' an ant...they easily just dig upwards...

 

[yen_saw]

You just backfill the hole in on top of them?

Yup. Some harvester ants came right on top of the surface after we "bury" the colony, but all the ants soon find a way back to the queen underground.

 

[yen_saw]

Update: Out of the 40 colonies reintroduced, 5 colonies have definitely showed sign of expanding, 15 colonies remained unclear, but the rest didn't make it. I will post up more pics when possible.

 

[aNisip]

Wow! What a ratio...no wonder there are so many alates during the nuptial flight!

 

[yen_saw]

Wow! What a ratio...no wonder there are so many alates during the nuptial flight!

Yeah not a bad ratio compare to the wildMany alates are being produced but usually most (if not all) don't make it before forming a colony.

 

[aNisip]

Yeah I noticed that with rover ant alates that I collected....I caught 10 with a male still attached and set them up with water cotton ball and test tube (the usual setup) and to this day only two queens have produced working colonies...these guys are invasive so I wont release them and after I'm done with my observations...I will introduce a native specie that I have been raising and commence a war

 

[yen_saw]

Yeah I noticed that with rover ant alates that I collected....I caught 10 with a male still attached and set them up with water cotton ball and test tube (the usual setup) and to this day only two queens have produced working colonies...these guys are invasive so I wont release them and after I'm done with my observations...I will introduce a native specie that I have been raising and commence a war

Cool...... Rover ants can be found in Texas too. They don't bite or sting.yea for Pogonomyrmex barbatus, many queens were killed by fire ants soon after nuptial flight from the park I went to. Even if the queen has a chance to dig in, the fire ant will still invade and kill the queen, I hate fire ants. Otherwise, will proper care, the collected queens have been able to form colony with a success rate of 70-80% in captivity.

 

[aNisip]

We have a new and really good at taking over invasive specie, Pheidole Megacephala...these guys are so bad that they are taking out the imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta...P. Megacephala, aka Big Headed Ants, don't have a sting or anything but they have numbers; being a multiple queen per colony specie (they can have upwards of 200 queens in one colony (not counting satellite colonies)...their soldiers have large mandibles and that's basically their only real feature...I've list many mantids to these guys coming into my house, cutting holes in the net cubes and robbing the mantises...very disappointing...now we have monthly treatment for them and it is slowly helping...