futurebird, 1 month ago

They are such beautiful ants! You almost forget how ravenous, warlike and sneaky they are!

The queens are all about the same shade of yellow/orange— which shows they all emerged at once. As their exoskeletons harden, their color will darken. In this species the wings are almost black—very striking! I hope the next batch isn’t all males— though this colony is massive— to think there were only 8 of them years ago.
(read alt text to learn how to spot a queen ant!) #antkeeping #ants #camponotus

A queen rests her wide head on her sisters back. They are in a cork nest and it’s crowded.
Some of the workers, that are chestnut brown with black gasters. Their gasters are a bit distended as this colony eats without end.
Side view of a major worker. Soon the young queens will be this red brown color. Notice the difference in thorax shape.