Leafcutter's Myrmecia pavida - Australian Bulldog Ants

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Leafcutter
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Leafcutter's Myrmecia pavida - Australian Bulldog Ants

Post by Leafcutter » Tue Jun 28, 2016 2:18 pm

Taxonomy:
- Family: Formicidae
- Subfamily: Formicinae
- Genus: Myrmecia
- Species: pavida
- Binomial Nomenclature: [latin]Myrmecia pavida[/latin]

Origin: Australia
Features: Minor - Major castes, excellent sight and hunting abilities
Hibernation: Diapause July through to September at 10-15°C
Appearance of the queen: 26-30mm Brown-to-Light Brown/Red body, Black gaster, Visible Yellow tinge to mandibles
Appearance of the workers: 18-24mm Brown-to-Light Brown/Red body, Black gaster, Visible Yellow tinge to mandibles

Nest building: Soil, Test tube, Ytong
Food: sugar water, insects, fruit
Temperature: 26 - 28°C, but can tolerate much lower temperatures, 5-15°C
Humidity: 50 - 60% (Dry, desert conditions)

Well I find myself in the rare position of owning the beautiful, the famous, [latin]Myrmecia pavida[/latin]. The small colony is absolutely amazing, the Queen is huge and I think there is also a larger worker amongst the group. They are quick to detect movement and even as I was moving my hand around in the setup, they were following my hands.

The colony numbers:

Queen: 1
Workers: 5
Pupae: 1
Larvae: 2
Eggs: 4


Pictures are not great but here we go:

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Atta cephalotes (2019)
Camponotus detritus (2018)
Camponotus maculatus (2018)

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Leafcutter
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Re: Leafcutter's Myrmecia pavida - Australian Bulldog Ants

Post by Leafcutter » Tue Jun 28, 2016 2:52 pm


Atta cephalotes (2019)
Camponotus detritus (2018)
Camponotus maculatus (2018)

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Leafcutter
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Re: Leafcutter's Myrmecia pavida - Australian Bulldog Ants

Post by Leafcutter » Wed Jun 29, 2016 3:52 pm

Here's the macro shots of the worker I got out yesterday:

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And here's a video of the worker, very calm I have to add:


Atta cephalotes (2019)
Camponotus detritus (2018)
Camponotus maculatus (2018)

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Bitterlime
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Re: Leafcutter's Myrmecia pavida - Australian Bulldog Ants

Post by Bitterlime » Fri Jul 01, 2016 7:56 pm

Nice video! I wouldn't like to be bitten by her!

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Acromyrmexbob
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Re: Leafcutter's Myrmecia pavida - Australian Bulldog Ants

Post by Acromyrmexbob » Sun Jul 03, 2016 7:23 pm

Raj, you need to be soo careful with this colony. There is no room for errors with such a small number. They look amazing. You have sourced some fantastic ants! A real serious member of the Hymenopteran society of enthusiasts. Drop this medic milarky and go into research. Do what you love!

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Re: Leafcutter's Myrmecia pavida - Australian Bulldog Ants

Post by Leafcutter » Tue Jul 05, 2016 8:47 am

The sixth worker eclosed sometime yesterday. I checked this morning and saw the light coloured worker but didn't stop to take a picture. I managed to spot 1 larger larva which will have been feasting on the small cricket which was happily murdered by these ants.

Atta cephalotes (2019)
Camponotus detritus (2018)
Camponotus maculatus (2018)

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Re: Leafcutter's Myrmecia pavida - Australian Bulldog Ants

Post by Leafcutter » Fri Jul 08, 2016 3:03 pm

Things are professing very well, the larva has grown considerably in size after eating the cricket, there are now 2 more mini crickets ready for the larva to feast on and 1 medium cricket also. The Queen has settled down and laid another nine eggs which takes the total to 10, exciting stuff!

Stats so far:

Queen: 1
Workers: 6
Pupae: 0
Larvae: 1
Eggs: 10


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Atta cephalotes (2019)
Camponotus detritus (2018)
Camponotus maculatus (2018)

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Leafcutter
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Re: Leafcutter's Myrmecia pavida - Australian Bulldog Ants

Post by Leafcutter » Mon Jul 11, 2016 8:04 am

At least another four eggs laid in the last 24hrs.

Atta cephalotes (2019)
Camponotus detritus (2018)
Camponotus maculatus (2018)

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Re: Leafcutter's Myrmecia pavida - Australian Bulldog Ants

Post by Leafcutter » Sat Jul 16, 2016 9:01 am

Well, things are progressing a lot faster than I imagined :D. The larva has spun a cocoon with the assistance of some sand brought into the boiling tube by the workers. In doing so there is a red sand pupa. The eggs have been moved away from the pupa and closer to the cotton wool.

Atta cephalotes (2019)
Camponotus detritus (2018)
Camponotus maculatus (2018)

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Re: Leafcutter's Myrmecia pavida - Australian Bulldog Ants

Post by Leafcutter » Tue Aug 30, 2016 11:06 am

This small colony is doing well, they take about two standard sized crickets per day and there are now four very large larvae, development is surprisingly faster than I expected :). The larvae have been feeding on the crickets and increasing in size along the way. The two cocoons remain, but soon I reckon they will eclose, in a couple of weeks or so.

Image

Image

Atta cephalotes (2019)
Camponotus detritus (2018)
Camponotus maculatus (2018)

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