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9/24/2020

September 24th, 2020

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kingdom: ​ In biology, kingdom is a taxonomic rank that is composed of smaller groups called phyla (or divisions, in plants). Supplement. Historically, kingdom is the highest taxonomic rank, or the most general taxon used in classifying organisms.
phylum:  ​a major taxonomic division of living organisms that contain one or more classes. An example is the phylum Arthropoda (insects, crustaceans, arachnids, etc, and myriapods) any analogous group, such as a group of related language families or linguistic stocks.
class:​In biological classification, class (Latin: classis) is a taxonomic rank, as well as a taxonomic unit, a taxon, in that rank. Other well-known ranks in descending order of size are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, order, family, genus, and species, with class fitting between phylum and order.
class:​In biological classification, the order (Latin: ordo) is. a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms and recognized by the nomenclature codes. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, family, genus, and species, with order fitting in between class and family.
order:​ the order (Latin: ordo) is. a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms and recognized by the nomenclature codes. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, family, genus, and species, with order fitting in between class and family.
family: (1) A taxonomic rank in the classification of organisms between genus and order. (2) A taxonomic group of one or more genera, especially sharing a common attribute.
subfamily:In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: subfamilia, plural subfamiliae) is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoological names with "-inae".
tribe:In biology, a tribe is a taxonomic rank above genus, but below family and subfamily. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes. ... Examples include the tribes Caprini (goat-antelopes), Hominini (hominins), Bombini (bumblebees), and Thunnini (tunas).
​
genus:A genus is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, as well as viruses, in biology. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. ​
subgenus:​a taxonomic category that ranks below genus and above species
species:​A biological species is a group of organisms that can reproduce with one another in nature and produce fertile offspring. ... Taxonomy is a scientific system that classifies organisms into categories based on their biological characteristics. Species can also be defined based on a shared evolutionary history and ancestry.

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9/21/2020

diversity of ants

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a species is a group of living organisms. that share common criteria three criteria allow us to to determine whether two living organisms are of the same species .  the  ancestors  of ants came from wasps from 200 milion years ago.
criterion 1: generally they look simaler. criterion 2: they can reproduce together-in other words they can produce viable offspring. that look like them. they give birth to fertile offspring. 

​taxonomy is the classification of living organisms.
taxonomy is the science of classifying living organisms different categories, common charastics, ansesters (fossils).

most common classification system
the system groups living organism into five kingdoms have phyla classes are divided into orders are divided into families are divided into genera and genra are divided into species. one phylum has several classes. species are the base unit of this classification
population: includes all the the individuals of the smae species that live in a given territory  
habitat: a habitat is a specific place where a species  is normally is found and provides the conditions necessary for a species survival.
some characteristics of a habitat  geographic location. climate, relief, fauna flora presence of water, closeness to humans and stucters etc.  
ecological niche: an ecological niche describes the role that a species plays in its environment.  it includes all interactions with the living and non living elements of its environment more specifically an ecological niche is described withen terms of an animals diet its sleeping patterns and its habitat.    
​ 
evolution: evolution is a slow process that leads to modifications in the living organisms. these modifications allow them to adapt to changes in their environment. theory of evolution explains why there are so many different life forms on earth.

evolution is based on natural selection, witch causes them a species to adapt to its environment which causes a species to adapt to its environment over generations individuals that have characteristics which give them an advantage are more able to  survive and reproduce.
​  

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9/16/2020

what  i like about each colony.

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Camponotus Noveboracensis:  their size and colony size. also the queens colorization,.
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Camponotus pennsylvanicus: their size and colony and  also the queens colorization
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Camponotus Nearticus: colony size and color sheme 
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Tetramoriom Immigrims: their size and how fast their colony growth is.
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Apheanogaster Occidentalis: colony size and color scheme.
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lasius flavus:  Coler scheme and size
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crematogaster cerasi: coler scheme and size.
Picture

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9/14/2020

aheanogaster occidentalis -  the western funnel ants

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Apheanogaster Occidentalis is a species of funnel ant. Their name is the funnel ant because their mounds are built like funnels to lure insects in. Once there in the funnel they can't get out ( except for the workers).
Picture
Apheanogaster workers with larvae.
Where do they nest? Apeanogaster Occidentalis nest under rocks, branches and will also make funnel nests as well.
Picture
Apeanogaster Occidentalis nest.
What do they eat? They tend to eat whatever falls in the funnel. For instance, crickets, praying mantises (if they got hurt while falling in the funnel), locusts, and aphids, which produce honey dew.  They also forage for honey. 
Picture
Apeanogaster Occidentalis eating a mosquito.
How do they do in captivity? They are a very good species for intermediate ant keepers. They do great in a dirt set-up, but don't expect to see them on the surface foraging.
Picture
Aphaenogaster Occidentalis in captivity.
Picture
my Apheanogaster occidentalis colony.

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9/10/2020

lasius flavus - yellow meadow ant

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Lasius flavus, the yellow meadow ant, isn't a species that you will see on land. They prefer to stay underground with their queen because it's very risky for this species to go out because of predators.  This includes other colonies and arachnids insects.
Picture
Lasius flavus workers with males
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Lasius flavus nanitics with queen
What do they eat? They primarily feast on soil aphids, which produce honeydew. When they do go out to forage, they tend to feast on baby crickets and other small prey.
Picture
Lasius flavus feasting on root aphids
Where do they nest? They tend to nest in the soil, and under rocks and branches.
Picture
Lasius flavus dirt nest
How do they do in captivity? They are a very easy species to keep. But don't expect to see them wandering around in a dirt set-up because they are a subterranean species. 
Picture
Lasius flavus nest
Picture
My lasius flavus ant colony

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9/9/2020

Camponotus  Nearticus  -   The smaller black carpenter ant

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The camponotus nearcticus is commonly known as the smaller black carpenter or the smaller carpenter ant.
What do they eat? The smaller carpenter ant is not that picky with food choices. They basically eat sweets, insects and bugs.
Picture
my camponotus nearcticus colony
Where do they nest? Just like every species of carpenter ant, they like to nest in logs, hollow sticks on the ground and sometimes under logs.  At times their main nest is above ground, directly under the sun.  This is to boost their brood to make them get to the pupae stage more quickly.
Picture
camponotus neacticus queen
How do they do in captivity? They are a pretty easy species to keep. They are a beginner ant species, which means that people who want to start keeping ants should choose this species first. They are slow growers and are not picky with eating choices.  Expect them to reach the 1,000 worker mark by year 3 of keeping them. ​
Picture
camponotus nearcticus queen cleaning herself

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9/8/2020

black carpenter ants - camponotus Pennsylvanicus.

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The black carpenter ants are the biggest species of carpenter ant in Eastern Canada.   The queen measures 15-18 mm, and the workers measure 6-14 mm.  They are polymorphic, which means that they have different sets of workers, so minors and majors.
Picture
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What do they eat? They mainly eat sweets like honey and raw honey.  They also eat aphid honeydew and insects, bugs and dead geckos and snakes.
Where do they nest?  They nest in raw wood, sometimes trees and hollow branches.
Picture

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9/4/2020

crematogaster cerasi - the black acrobat ant

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The black acrobat ant (Crematogaster Cerasi) is a distinct species of ant because of its heart shaped gaster.  The reason it is called the acrobat ant, they can lift their gasters up, which no one other ant can do.
Picture
Cremtogaster Cerasi moving eggs.
PictureCrematogaster Cerasi in captivity [this is not my colony]

What do they eat? The crematogaster cerasi feast on honey dew produced by aphids.  They alsofeast on other insects and bugs.
Picture
Crematogaster Cerasi worker farming aphids
Where do they nest? The black acrobat ant nests in raw hollow branches and raw wood.
​
Picture
Crematogaster Cerasi nest
They are a great species for intermediate ant keepers, which will know how to care for them.  These ants are escape artists when they reach the 1,000 workers mark.  This is when they are more willing to send out workers from the nest to explore the area.
Picture
This is one of my Crematogaster Cerasi colonies

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9/3/2020

tetramorium immigrams -the pavement ant

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Tetramoriom immigrims, the pavement ant, is a species of ant, which you can see on the sidewalk having wars. They battle to determine the size of their  territories with the other colonies.  
Picture
Tetramoriom queen with worker.
Picture
Tetramoriom war.
What do Tetramorioum eat?  They eat bugs and insects, walnuts, pastries, dead mice and seeds, and also honeydew and sap from trees.
Picture
Tetramorium eating a earthworm.
How do they do in captivity? They are a very easy species to keep.  They grow fast. which means that by their 2nd year of captivity, they're already at the 5000 workers mark.
Picture
My tetramorim colony.

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9/2/2020

tampinoma sessile - the odorous house ant

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Tampinoma sessile is a widely diverse species spanning across from Canada to Northern Mexico. They are very good  at adapting to new continents.  They have a polygynous colonies, which means that the workers accept more than one Queen.  This helps the colony to grow faster.  Also, if they get attacked by another colony, the Queen's inside the nest can hunker down.
Picture
Tampinoma sessile nest.
Picture
Tampinoma sessile queen.
What do they eat?  The tampinoma sessile ants farm aphids.  In aphid colonies, they also eat pastries like bread.  They will also eat bugs and other insects.
Picturetampinoma sessile farming ahpids.
Where do they nest? They nest in raw wood hollow branches on the ground and under smooth rocks. They need sunlight so that they can heat their eggs up to get them to the pupae stage faster.  

How do they do in captivity? They are a great species of ant to keep in captivity. Give them all they need, and they will be thriving in the thousands in their 3rd year of captivity.
Picture
tampino sessile captive colony in test tube setup.
Picture
tampinoma sessile nesting spot.
Picture
These are my tampinoma sessile in their nest.

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9/1/2020

Camponotus Noveboracensis - The red and black carpenter ant

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The red and black carpenter ant, of the species Camponotus Noveboracensis, are a highly polymorphic species.  They can have major workers (almost as big as the queen)
​ and then minor worker that are the size of the queens gaster. 
Picture
This is my Camponotus Noveboracensis colony. They are in a vial because this isjust a temporary set-up, until they have more workers.
What do they eat?  In the wild, they will search for anything. If there are dead rabbits on the side of the road,  they will eat it. In captivity, they eat pasteurized honey and raw honey. They also eat  crickets or freeze-dried crickets, which available from Petsmart,  or anything I would give them. 
Where do they nest? They nest in dry wood, hollow sticks on the ground, and houses.
Picture
A Camponotus Noveboracensis nest.
How long do queens live?  The Camponotus Noveboracensis queen can roughly live over 12 years.
Picture
This is a Camponotus Noveboracensis queen.
Picture
This Camponotus Noveboracensis queen is a dealate. She is not quite yet a queen. When she lays her first egg, she will become a queen.

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    I am 13 years old and in Grade 7 and have always loved bugs.  One day, I will be an entomologist. ​My favourite insect is the ant, and I will spend hours just watching them work.  Join me for some fun ant exploration!

    Archives

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    Black Acrobat Ant
    The Odorous House Ant
    The Pavement Ant
    The Red And Black Carpenter Ant

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