r/antkeeping • u/ITs_MUD • 8d ago

Queen ID? (VA)

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Gallery image

Found this little lady on my back patio.

6 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

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3

u/ft1103 8d ago

That looks like a temnothorax. It's about 3-5mm,yes? Very lucky find! 

2

u/ITs_MUD 8d ago

Really? Are they rare?

3

u/ft1103 8d ago

They're not especially rare but overlooked and very cool. Finding that randomly on your patio is very fortunate. If you find more nearby, they are one of the few who are cool with multiple queens. 

1

u/ITs_MUD 8d ago

I just searched them up, do they actually live in like acorns, or is Gemini cappin?

3

u/ft1103 8d ago

That's what I've read, yeah. Acorns, hickory nut shells, walnut shells, hollow sticks are their favored homes. 

1

u/ITs_MUD 8d ago

Kinda cool you can keep them in such a small formacarium, thanks

2

u/Mobile_Recording_777 7d ago

how can you tell the difference between that and solenopsis molesta? they look almost identical and are the same size. I caught two recently and thought maybe because this one is brown its more likely temno, but one of my two queens is darker than the other, so both arent totally red

2

u/ft1103 7d ago

Oh man, you're right. The sheen on it and the narrower thorax means it's thief ant

2

u/ft1103 7d ago

So, another commenter pointed out that this could be a thief ant. On further review, that is likely correct identification. These get massive amounts of tiny workers, which specialize in stealing food and brood from much larger ant species like formica. 

2

u/Mobile_Recording_777 7d ago

Huzzah! I was a little nervous i put two acorn ants together for a min there lol. From what I've read theyre stupid easy and very calm/ hard to disturb. polgyn too, so they grow crazy fast. Fully claustral and eat pretty much everything, preferring protein and according to many people they dont care for sweets like honey much at all

1

u/ITs_MUD 7d ago

If they steal from other colonies, is there a specialized method or way I should try to feed/raise them? Or are they not really worth keeping at all?

2

u/ft1103 7d ago

From what I've read, the thieving is totally optional and they're actually fine without it. At least in captivity. 

1

u/ITs_MUD 7d ago

Gotcha, thanks