Catching So Many Queen Ants

Summary

In this episode of Ants Canada, the host shares the ups and downs of ant keeping, including the loss of colonies but also the excitement of catching new queen ants in Toronto. The video serves as a tutorial on identifying and capturing queen ants post-nuptial flight, offering tips for success. The host introduces a new Camponotus and Formica queen, discusses the importance of patience and proper eyewear, and highlights improved AC test tubes for nurturing new colonies. The episode ends with a special announcement of a Trap-Jaw queen ant and an interactive Q&A session for viewers.

Takeaways

• 🌳 The video discusses the importance of finding a location with greenery and water for queen ant collection.
• 🐜 The narrator shares personal experiences of ant keeping, emphasizing the joy of starting a colony from a single queen.
• 📹 The video is a tutorial on how to catch a new queen ant to start an ant colony, a fulfilling aspect of ant keeping according to the channel.
• 📅 The narrator explains the nuptial flight season for ants, when queens mate and then seek new places to start nests.
• 👀 The importance of patience and keen eyesight is highlighted for successfully spotting and catching queen ants.
• 📍 The video mentions that permits may be required for insect collection, and permission is necessary for public property.
• 🎙️ The Ants Canada channel started in Toronto, Canada, but the narrator now resides in the Philippines.
• 🔍 The narrator provides tips on distinguishing queen ants from other types of ants, directing viewers to tutorials for more information.
• 🏠 The video introduces improved AC test tubes for ant keeping, featuring longer tubes, notches for water filling, and stabilizing teeth.
• 🆕 A new Trap-Jaw queen ant is introduced, named 'Jawbreakers,' representing a new colony for the channel to nurture.
• 🎁 The video concludes with an announcement of a contest for viewers to win AC test tube packs and encourages participation in the comment section.

Q & A

What is the main theme of the video?

The main theme of the video is about catching queen ants to start new ant colonies and the introduction of a new Trap-Jaw queen ant named Jawbreakers.

Why is the AntsCanada channel named so, even though the host is in the Philippines?

The AntsCanada channel is named so because it started in Toronto, Canada, where the host lived before moving to the Philippines in 2011.

What is the best place to look for queen ants according to the video?

The best place to look for queen ants is a location with a lot of greenery and a body of water nearby, such as a nature trail near a river.

What is a nuptial flight in the context of ants?

A nuptial flight is an annual event where reproductive young virgin queens and males leave the nest to mate. After mating, the males die, and the fertilized queens drop to the ground, break off their wings, and seek places to start new nests.

Why are queen ants more likely to be found after a rainstorm?

Queen ants are more likely to fly and be found after a rainstorm because the moisture and cooler temperatures can trigger mating flights.

What are some characteristics of Camponotus ants mentioned in the video?

Camponotus ants are large, active, avid feeders who love sweets and insects. They do not sting but can spray formic acid. They are also known for taking a long time to grow to an impressive size.

What is special about the new AC test tubes introduced in the video?

The new AC test tubes are longer, have a notch for filling water and cotton, come with a small blue sponge, have teeth to prevent rolling, and include transparent adapter pieces to control the opening size and attachment options.

What is the importance of not mixing different queen ants in one container?

Different queen ants should not be mixed in one container because they can fight and use formic acid to harm each other, which is dangerous for the ants.

What is the GAM project mentioned in the video?

The GAM project is a platform where queen ants caught by the host in Toronto will be kept and sold to prospective ant keepers in the area once they have their first set of workers.

What is the AC question of the week in the video?

The AC question of the week asks for one reason why carpenter ants would make a great species for beginner ant keepers.

How often does the AntsCanada channel upload new videos?

The AntsCanada channel uploads a new ant video every Saturday at 8 a.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Outlines

00:00

🌳 Antkeeping Challenges and Hope

The script begins by acknowledging the hardships faced by the Ants Canada community, including the loss of a Jawbreakers ant colony and the Titans' struggle in their new terrarium. Despite these setbacks, the narrator, known as 'Your Ant Man,' promises good news ahead and encourages viewers to watch the entire video. The channel's focus on tutorial videos is reintroduced, with an emphasis on the rewarding experience of starting an ant colony from a single queen. The narrator shares his location in Toronto, Canada, where the channel originated, and explains his strategy for finding queen ants in nature trails, particularly near greenery and water sources. He also discusses the importance of the nuptial flight season for ant reproduction and provides tips for identifying queen ants, suggesting that patience is key in this process.

05:04

🐜 The Joy of Catching Queen Ants

The second paragraph delves into the rewarding experience of catching queen ants and nurturing them to start new colonies. The narrator describes the process of observing the queen laying eggs and the development of the first worker ants, highlighting the emotional connection ant keepers form with their colonies. He also addresses viewers who enjoy watching the videos without keeping ants themselves, expressing gratitude for their support. The narrator then shares his successful discovery of a queen ant, a Camponotus species, and discusses the characteristics and benefits of Camponotus ants as a starter species for new ant keepers. He also emphasizes the importance of wearing proper eyewear when searching for ants and the need for permits or permissions when collecting insects in certain areas.

10:06

📦 Improved AC Test Tubes and New Queen Ant Introduction

In this paragraph, the narrator introduces improvements made to the AC test tubes, which are used for caring for queen ants and their first set of workers. The new design features a longer tube for more water, a notch for easier filling, a small blue sponge, and teeth to prevent rolling. The tubes now also include transparent adapter pieces to control the opening size and provide a more secure environment for the ants. The narrator then makes a special announcement, revealing a new Trap-Jaw queen ant that has been acquired and named 'Jawbreakers,' expressing excitement for the potential new colony. He also shares his success in catching more queen ants during the filming and the importance of separating them to avoid conflict.

15:08

🏆 Antkeeping Successes and Community Engagement

The final paragraph wraps up the video with a summary of the successful queen ant collection and a reminder of the upcoming return to Manila, Philippines. The narrator expresses his intention to keep the caught queen ants in Toronto and sell them through the GAP project for local ant keepers. He also encourages viewers to participate in the 'AC Question of the Week' for a chance to win a Deluxe AC Test Tube pack and thanks the viewers for their support. The video ends with a call to action for viewers to subscribe to the channel for more ant-related content and a reminder of the upload schedule.

Keywords

💡Ant Colony

An ant colony refers to a group of ants living together and typically consisting of a queen, workers, soldiers, and males. In the video, the narrator discusses the challenges faced by his ant colonies, such as the death of a colony and the struggles of the Titans in their new terrarium. This concept is central to the theme of the video, which revolves around the care and management of ant colonies.

💡Nuptial Flight

Nuptial flight is a term used to describe the mating process of ants, where the reproductive virgin queens and males fly away from their nests to mate. The script mentions that the narrator is looking for queen ants that have just engaged in their nuptial flight, which is a crucial time for ant keepers to catch new queens to start colonies.

💡Queen Ant

A queen ant is the reproductive female in an ant colony, responsible for laying eggs and maintaining the colony's population. The video focuses on catching queen ants as a way to start new ant colonies, highlighting the importance of identifying and capturing these ants during their post-nuptial flight period.

💡Trap-Jaw Ant

Trap-jaw ants are a type of ant known for their powerful mandibles. The narrator mentions a young Trap-jaw ant colony that was massacred, and later introduces a new Trap-Jaw queen ant, indicating the significance of this species in the video's narrative about ant colony management and recovery.

💡Formica

Formica is a genus of ants that includes many common species. The script refers to Formica ants, particularly Formica Glacia and Formica Fusca, as species the narrator is looking for during his search for queen ants. These species are relevant to the video's tutorial on catching queen ants.

💡Camponotus

Camponotus is another genus of ants, characterized by their large size and active behavior. The narrator catches a Camponotus queen ant during his search and discusses their characteristics, such as being avid feeders and not stinging, making them a good choice for beginners in ant keeping.

💡Test Tube Setup

A test tube setup is a method used by ant keepers to house and care for queen ants and their initial workers. The video script describes improvements to the AC test tubes, which are designed to provide a better environment for queen ants as they establish their colonies, highlighting the importance of proper care during this critical phase.

💡Ant Keeping

Ant keeping is the hobby of maintaining and observing ant colonies, often starting from a single queen. The video script emphasizes the fulfillment of starting a colony from a caught queen ant, which is a central theme of the video and a key aspect of the ant keeping hobby.

💡Permits and Permissions

The script mentions the need for permits or permissions when collecting insects, such as ants, in certain areas. This is an important consideration for ant keepers, as it relates to the legality and ethics of collecting queen ants for their hobby.

💡Ant Love

Ant love is a term used by the narrator to express the passion and dedication of ant keepers towards their hobby. It is used throughout the video to convey the emotional connection and joy that ant keepers experience in their pursuit of ant keeping.

Highlights

In times of despair, hope often comes in unexpected ways for the AC ant diverse community.

A young Trap-jaw ant colony was tragically wiped out by wild black crazy ants.

The beloved Titans ant colony is struggling in their new terrarium due to an unknown condition.

Ants Canada Ant channel shares good news despite recent setbacks.

The channel's creator discusses the rewarding experience of starting an ant colony from a single queen.

A tutorial on catching a new queen ant to start an ant colony is presented.

The creator is based in Toronto, Canada, where the channel started, despite currently living in the Philippines.

The best places to find queen ants are areas with greenery and water sources nearby.

Queen ants are sought after during their nuptial flight season for starting new colonies.

A guide on how to distinguish queen ants from other types of ants is available on the channel.

Ants are more likely to fly after a rainstorm, increasing the chances of finding a queen.

The creator emphasizes the importance of patience and persistence in queen ant catching.

A new Camponotus queen ant is found and caught for the channel's viewers.

The creator explains that wing retention is not the best indicator of fertilization in queen ants.

Camponotus ants are recommended for beginners due to their size and feeding habits.

The creator finds a Formica queen ant, a common and fast-acting species.

The importance of proper eyewear when searching for queen ants is highlighted.

Permits may be required for insect collection, and permissions should be sought for public property.

Ants Canada introduces improved test tubes for queen ants, featuring a longer design and additional accessories.

A special announcement reveals a new Trap-Jaw queen ant, introducing a potential new colony named 'Jawbreakers'.

The creator successfully catches multiple queen ants, despite the risk of them fighting in the same container.

A reminder that the creator will not be bringing the caught queen ants to the Philippines but will sell them locally.

The Ants Canada channel concludes with a call to action for viewers to share their queen ant catching experiences.

Transcripts

In times of despair

Hope often comes knocking on your door in the most unexpected ways

It's been a little tough for us these past few days here in the AC ant diverse

With an ant colony that had died our Jawbreakers

A young Trap-jaw, ant Colony which was massacred by some wild black crazy ant savages

And as we saw in last week's video

Our cherished Titans seemed to not be doing so well in their new terrarium

they to seem to be dying do to mysterious force or condition

But it isn't all bad news here on this channel for today

I. Your ant man come bearing good news Ac family

Trust me keep on watching until the end

Welcome to the Ants Canada Ant channel

Please subscibe to my channel

And hit the bell icon

Welcome to AC family

Enjoy !

What's up, AC family welcome to the Ants Canada Ant channel now,

I wanted to take a break from our ordinary ant videos to create a video

That's more in line with the tutorial videos that I used to upload on this channel

I wanted to create a video on catching a new queen ant to start your ant colony. Now

I've always said on this channel that the most fulfilling part about ant keeping is starting your colony from just a single caught queen ant

So I'm here actually in Toronto Canada

Where this channel started actually it's the reason why it's called Ants

Canada a lot of you have been asking why the channels called Ants Canada when I'm living in the Philippines

Well I moved to the Philippines

In 2011

But the Ants Canada channel started here in Toronto Canada when I was living here now. I'm here in

My favorite place to look for queen ants if I can't find queen ants in my neighborhood

I'll usually find one here in this nature trail a

Lot of people have been asking me

You know where should I go to find queen ants and I always tell them look for a place that has a lot of

Greenery

Perhaps a body of water nearby

Here there is actually a river just not too far from here, please excuse the airplanes guys

This is more of a blog style Ants Canada video now what I'm looking for are

Queen ants that have

Just engaged in their nuptial flight

So for those of you who are new to the world of ants every year and have a nuptial flight where the

Reproductive young Virgin Queens and males who have been waiting around the nest all year

Take to the air and that's when they mate and the male's die, but the females now impregnated with

The male sperm drop to the ground and break their wings off and

They go and seek other places to start their and

Their nests

And so we as the ant keeper we go out during the seasons of nuptial flights

and we look for these queen ants that are kind of walking around having just mated and

Looking for areas to start their new nests

So what you have to do is you got to keep your eyes peeled essentially and keep them to the ground to look for Queens?

We have tutorials on how to

Distinguish Queens from other workers and Major workers because it can be tricky if you're not used to seeing what Queens look like

So check out those tutorials on this channel another tip is ants are more likely to fly after a rainstorm

So yesterday here in Toronto. There was a big thunderstorm

So today, we should be able to find some queen late

Walking around

Now it's the beginning of august so species that I'm looking for right now are

Those that belong to

Formica Glacia S-- and

Kempen audits they should be around so those are what I'm looking for at the moment?

For those of you who are in North America, and in Europe as well as Northern Asia

We are well into our nuptial flight season, so this video is for you guys. I'm going to Scour the ground here

Looking for any kind of movement

When looking for ants you have to really be patient

You can't be frustrated if you don't find

Queens right away

Because sometimes they're quite elusive

Mmm, not finding any yet here a lot of people write to us saying oh

We can't find queens anywhere where I live well to that. I say unless you're living in Iceland or the antarctic where?

There are no ants

Then sure you won't find any any queens, but if you live in any other part of the world

There should be an surround you just have to know where to look and when to look and believe me

It's a rewarding experience when you finally catch one and

Place her in a test Tube setup and

Realize she's laying eggs for you and the eggs eventually develop into her first scientific workers

and then watching young colony feed for the first time and you know transfer that food mouth-to-mouth to the queen who had

Fasted for over a month raising her nana tics. It's really such an awesome and really moving

Experience that

Ant Keepers really love and I hope you guys get to also experience that kind of

Joy and fulfillment of watching your ant colony start and for those of you who don't want to keep ants

And you're just subscribed here to simply watch and videos that's fine too. Thank you for watching this and bearing with us

We will definitely keep you updated on the colonies back home in Manila okay, so I'm going to turn around and

Go back on my tracks to see if I am missing or queen ant scurrying by oh

What is this? We just found a queen ant guys see that?

Patience pays off this here is a Camponotus queen she still has her wings

But if you've been following the channel for a while, it doesn't mean she hasn't made it

Sometimes we keep their wings

And sometimes not mated queens break off their wings, so wing retention is not the best and most reliable indicator

of

Fertilization

Alright, so I'm going to put this queen into my container. This is great

We caught one

Another thing you have to be aware of it people will often pass by so you kind of have to have no shame sometimes

Catching a queen for me is worth it

If you've seen my speedos video you know that I don't have shamed

Oh the queen drop and she's now trying to break off her wings now this species here. I believe is Camponotus

Pensylvanicus

It's completely jet wat but sometimes we can have red markings

All right

So now we're off to look for More Queens

Now Camponotus ants like that queen that we just call it is a great starter speakings

They're great because they're large so you can really see them in a for material you can see they're young

They're also very active and avid feeders. They love their sweets. They love their insects

They don't sting which is great, but the only thing about Camponotus

is that they do take a long time to grow you usually see them get to an impressive size by

Year, two or three

Aaaand

Sometimes that can be quite a long wait for ant keepers be sure to check out our Camponotus

Tutorial on this channel if you are planning on Keeping Camponotus or if you caught a camponotus queen this year

But otherwise Camponotus is a great genius to get started on now one of the tips that I give people is

You really need to be able to see properly

Like if you oh, wait, I found another queen you see this here this here

Is

a Formica

Alright this here's a formica Queen okay, so this is I believe Formica Fusca very common

Formica Species now, I'm going to catch her, but we found this great

Also, love them, they're so fast in Act events

All right, easy family. We caught her sorry

I don't have any snap cap piles with me, so I'm just kind of improvising with stuff

I have right now

But I will be transferring them to test tubes later on so anyways as I was saying

It's good to wear proper eyewear

You need glasses if you need glasses wear your contacts because that can make all the difference in the world

Before I ever got lasik surgery I used to sometimes go

Looking for clean hands, and I would forget to wear my glasses and Lo and behold those were the days. I couldn't find any queens

Another thing you should keep in mind

Is that a lot of places require a permit to collect insects so it's best to really check the

Out of your area, and of course if you're on public property you must get permission first all right and so now

While I'm going to continue looking for Queens here we have a special announcement

Ac family that I think you guys will be very pleased to hear

And here it is all right while I continue looking for Queen Ants in Toronto

We've got some great news for those of you who have been lucky enough to catch Queen ants this year real quick

We totally improved our Ac test Tube's check out some of the awesome changes

We've made to them to help you better care for your queen ants while they are raising their nana ticks their first set of workers

First our

Ac test tubes are now longer so you can fill them up with more water than most ordinary test tubes

Which help make your water reservoir of your queens test Tube last longer our ac test tubes now also come with a little notch to

Help guide you with filling the water and pushing your cotton in but what's also cool is

The Ac test Tube even comes with a small blue sponge that can be pushed all the way to that knotch

One of the coolest new features are these little teeth ever hate how test Tubes roll around in a drawer

These teeth hold your test tube still so your queen doesn't get jostled around all the time which is important during this key period When?

The queen should be as at ease and stress-free as possible

Finally the coolest part about our improved Ac test tubes is this you can now get them with these three

Transparent adapter pieces which fit onto the test Tube openings

Check out this piece here we found that leaving the test Tube open in a set up

sometimes causes queen ants and young colonies to feel too exposed

Usually the ants end up dragging their garbage or Debris to clog up the end of their test Tube in

Attempts to constrict the opening to minimize micro drafts which can endanger and dry out an ant colony and the Brood

But now with this piece here you can constrict the opening of the test tube so the inside of the test Tube isn't so exposed

To the air if you've raised young and colonies before you know that this feature is super helpful

The hole is approximately four millimeters in size which allows for most species magnetic workers to fit through

with this adapter piece you can then attach the entire test Tube to any of our hybrid nests or Ac test Tube portals

and as for the other adapter pieces

this one allows you to connect the test-Tube to our hybrid nest or Ac test to portal with a

Larger opening and this adapter piece to our large ac vinyl tubing for links to all these items

Described plus more info I placed them in the description box

So an keepers do check them out and so the very first ant in the entire world to enjoy this setup is

The big Surprise I've been itching to tell you about a couple of weeks ago shortly after the titans moved into the terrarium

Something caught my eye in my condo building Ac family. I am happy to introduce to you our newest

Queen Ant

Behold our new Trap-Jaw, Queen ant and addons of Maca species

She is a beauty although

I won't be able to bring the queen s that I catch in Toronto back with me to manila

This new queen ant which is currently in the dark in my drawer of my ant room is

Ours to care for and nurtured let's hope she's fertilized and gives us a column I also hope you don't mind me making this executive

Decision to call her future colony should they arise?

the Jawbreakers and now back to Toronto Canada

All right, easy family surprise

I am super excited to raise that queen so guys be sure to leave in the comment section

What do you think we should call this queen?

I hope you guys are okay with us calling them the Jawbreakers once they turn into a colony and hopefully they do oh

And I found another queen right here. Awesome. They are just popping out of everywhere

Got it, and what's cool is while I was telling you the news I was able to catch

More queen ants look at how many look at that

Normally, it's best. Oh no. Oh, no

They're fighting see this is why it's best to not mix them, but I have no choice

I don't have oh, no let it go okay. I don't have another container

So they'll just have to be together for now

This is dangerous because they can formic acid spray each other even though they don't sting they could just formic acid each other and then

Really hurt each other, but I'm going to separate them as soon as I get home. Oh, no leave her alone

And I absolutely will not keep different general of ants together in one container

So I have the formica Queen here and the Camponotus Queens here

So all right I would consider today on and collecting success

Now what I'm going to do is I'm going to put each of these in their own test tube setup

And then hopefully one of them will successfully gain a colony, and that does it Ac family

Thank you so much for watching another episode of the ants Canada and channel by next weekend

I should be back in Manila Philippines

And we'll be updating you on the status of our ant colonies remember guys. It's ant love forever

Thank you for watching Ac family

Did you manage to catch a queen ant yet for this nuptial flight season tell me about it in the comments section guys

If you haven't yet?

Don't worry

There is still plenty of time to catch queen ants if you are in the Northern hemisphere

Be sure to watch our various tutorials on this channel

If you need help catching a queen ant by the way as

Mentioned I will not be bringing the beautiful queen ants home with me back to the philippines

But I will be keeping them here in Toronto and put them up for sale through the gam project for prospective and keepers in Toronto

Once they have their first set of workers

So just a reminder to check out the gap project if you are looking to buy queen ants from your area

Wherever in the world you may be linked in the description box

Asean our colony. I've left a hidden cookie for you here

If you would just like to see a step by step tutorial video of these queen ants being placed in test-Tube

And now it's time for the Ac question of the week in last week's Ac question of the week we asked

What is the name of Mark Moffitt's best-selling book?

Congratulations to

Jesse Morgan who correctly answered

Adventures among eggs

Congratulations, jesse you just won a free ap test to portal from our shop in this week's Ac question of the week we asked what?

Is one reason why carpenter ants would make a great species for beginner and keepers?

Leave your answer in the comment section and you could win our Deluxe Ac test Tube pack I've seen in this video from awesome

Hope you can subscribe to the channel as we upload a new ant video every Saturday at 8 a.m.

Eastern Standard time

Please remember to like comment share and subscribe if you enjoyed this video so we can keep thinking you ethic and videos like this

It's ant love forever