# TRAP Jaaaawwwww!



## Galapoheros (Feb 23, 2006)

Me tired.  Looked a long time today for the Trap Jaw.  I found approx. one colony per hour.  Strange ants.  Sometimes I would find just one sitting under a rock.  Then, three, just sitting together under a rock.  Sometimes just two ants.  No holes or any other places to hide or places/holes to escape too under the rock.  Free spirit ants!  I don't think they are so 'soldier' like as most other ants are.  I think they are more individualistic.  But I did see a colony that had maybe 50 ants in the colony.  I haven't done allot of research on them.  I haven't focused on ants real hard.  All arthros are interesting to me.  Well, I think I have found two queens.  Thorax seems high in these two.  Let me know if I'm off about this stuff.  I'm not going by knowledge, just kind of going by my common sense.  The wings worked by the muscles are there so just makes sense that the thorax would be bigger.  The two ants I think are queens are a little bigger too.  I've heard of 'drones' too but I can't remember what purpose they serve(?).  I think I'll put them in my trop terr.  Think the colony will produce more queens, or produce at all?  I'm going to put them in the terr right now.   Nice to find out they are not rare around here.  I was a little concerned about that, but not anymore.  A little hard to find, but not rare.  Maybe I have seen these before and wrote them off as wood ants.


----------



## Scolopendra55 (Feb 24, 2006)

SWEET!!!! Get those bad boys (actually girls) on some substrate! An X-Large KritterKeeper with about 7-8 inches of substrate and some pieces of wood and some leaf litter should be good. See if you cant get some larvae! Jeesh I think I'm just about as excited as you


----------



## Galapoheros (Feb 24, 2006)

Scolopendra55 said:
			
		

> SWEET!!!! Get those bad boys (actually girls) on some substrate! An X-Large KritterKeeper with about 7-8 inches of substrate and some pieces of wood and some leaf litter should be good. See if you cant get some larvae! Jeesh I think I'm just about as excited as you


Ha!  Weeedooogggy!  You kind of motivated me to go look again.  I like the way it worked out.  Well, they are in the terr right now.  Just running around.  Social unrest.  Ha!  Don't know who they are until they get organized somehow.  Kind of reminds me of some people I know.  Hehe.  The only ones I don't see are the ones I thought were queens.  Probably being protected somewhere by security guards.  Maybe they will get some kind of stucture going by tomorrow and be grouped up somwhere in there.


----------



## Scolopendra55 (Feb 24, 2006)

What is the setup you have (substrate or any objects in the cage)? And how many did you get?


----------



## Galapoheros (Feb 24, 2006)

Scolopendra55 said:
			
		

> What is the setup you have (substrate or any objects in the cage)? And how many did you get?


It's the same setup I posted in Myriapods.  Here it is again.  Maybe too humid in there.  Has deep sub 3 to 5".  A rock to get under or a stump to get in or next to.  I will see how it works out.  They are still running around but not as many.  Wonder where they are starting to hide...  Allot of places to hide.  Sure do like to hide rather than attack.  But I put a cricket in there when I only had one.  That one was living in the stump.  When the cricket would crawl on the stump, the ant would come out to see what was going on with jaws cocked.  Seem real sensitive.  I think I've got 20-25.  I picked up all the ones I could find under one rock.  I felt like I had a queen so I left the few other colonies I found there because I couldn't see the queen in those.  They try to hide so fast, I could'nt tell.  But pretty sure I have two queens.  What you see in the white container is all I brought back.  It's 10 gal.


----------



## jezzy607 (Feb 24, 2006)

Awesome find!  Those two individuals definitely appear to be queens to me.  I wish we had cool fauna such as that here in Indiana!  Good luck keeping them going.


----------



## Malhavoc's (Feb 24, 2006)

be sure to post if you have any offspring produced, I've had terrible luck with ant colonies...


----------



## Galapoheros (Feb 24, 2006)

Well that was kind of dumb!  Now I can't get them out of there if I wanted to.  The excitement of finding them has settled down a little and I'm wondering if I should have put something else in there.  They are digging and digging.  They aren't eating anything yet:? .  I tried a little cricket but one ant just killed it and left it there.  I'm thinking I should have made an ant farm somehow just for these instead of putting them in a 10 gal.  Oh well, just have to let it roll from here.  I'll post anything new about them for the ant fans.

edit:  I just put a little junk of brown sugar in there.  One is real focused on it and coming back to it over and over again.  Stashing it somewhere.  The others just leave it alone.  I'm sure they need protein though.  I'll keep trying diff insects and maybe some raw chicken or steak.  Pic is not actual size..haheha...that's for sure.


----------



## Scolopendra55 (Feb 24, 2006)

The ant stashing the brown sugar may be taking it to the queen. Also, make sure the crickets you give them are very small (small enough that an ant can eat it by itself). So their burrowing you say? Thats a good sign!! Man this is fascinating! Just be sure to keep me (and the other ant lovers) fully informed on any new changes


----------



## Galapoheros (Feb 25, 2006)

I have a question.  I've read that they hunt individually.  I wasn't sure how to take that.  Do they hunt and eat there own kill and usually not share it, or do they hunt and take their personal kill back to the nest to share?  If each kills and eats it's own food, that would explain a smaller colony I guess since they wouldn't depend on each other as much as other ants usually do.  So you think that ant with the sugar was sucking up to the queen, scoring points?  Man, there's always one of those at work .  HEY!...termites!  I've got plenty of those in the backyard.  I'll try that.  I have a good feeling about them eating termites.


----------



## Scolopendra55 (Feb 25, 2006)

Termites are a good idea as they are readily available and soft bodied.


----------



## Waspman (Feb 27, 2006)

Very cool! I live in south/central Texas and I have never seen these before.

Thanks for sharing, keep on keeping us updated!


----------



## Malhavoc's (Feb 27, 2006)

One thing about termites is the movie Antsz I believe it was.. termite verus ant WAR!! bahaha..


----------



## Scythemantis (Feb 28, 2006)

Those were BADASS termite designs, too, complete with the acid nozzle!

I believe trap jaws feed their queen, but do not otherwise share food.


----------



## Scolopendra55 (Feb 28, 2006)

Scythemantis said:
			
		

> I believe trap jaws feed their queen, but do not otherwise share food.


Thats correct.


----------



## Galapoheros (Feb 28, 2006)

There have been a few that have died off.  The others carry the dead around and put them together in a corner.  I don't see them eat anything.  I found termites in my backyard.  I put them in the terr but the ants just slam their jaws on them and kill them.  When they decide they are dead, they just walk off.  Crickets, small spiders, termites, and small pieces of raw meat.  Nothing.  What do you think?  Any ideas?  There does seem to be less ants out at one time.  I think they have established a nest under the sub where they can hang out.


----------



## mantid (Feb 28, 2006)

Maybe they are a herbivorous species, try putting different types of leaves in there.  Some ant species also live off fungus which they grow.  Pherhaps you could contact a local specialist and inquire about what they eat(as long as they are legal to keep)


----------



## Scolopendra55 (Feb 28, 2006)

Try putting a piece of paper towel soaked with a mixture of honey and water.


----------



## Galapoheros (Feb 28, 2006)

OK, I'm on it.  I'll try the honey thing:drool: .  A few are going to a small, melted clump of brown sugar on the rock and taking a little swig.  No honey here.  Going to the store.  I'll get a peach, apple....try a few things.  Man, going to the store for ant food!  What a nut!  Don't tell anybody.......Ha!  Oh, and bugs are legal in tx.  Except for a very few sp.  Those are usually found in caves that are gated anyway.  Tx spends allot of money trying to KILL bugs.  Well, going to get the goods.

Edit:  Just not interested in the honey.  Maybe they have been hitting the brown sugar and just aren't hungry.  But they seem to be looking for something.  They look in cracks, under little rocks....guess I'll keep researching them on the web and find the missing link.  Maybe they are OK but I don't think so.


----------



## dtknow (Mar 12, 2006)

They are likely not interested in protein because their are no larvae to raise(workers don't need protein). If your queens really are queens then they should need some protein. I heard these guys are designed to hunt springtails.


----------



## Galapoheros (Mar 12, 2006)

I wish I never had put them in there.  They are digging and covering up the mosses and small ferns.  Would have been great for an Antfarm.  One filled with peat.  They do go to the honey every once in a while.  I put a few drops in a depression on the rock.  I'm tired of them in there.  They are getting by somehow.  I bet there are larvae now, but I can't see what's going on.  Still digging.  Every day.  I found an area on one of my hunts that has some Trapjaw colonies.  Should be the same sp but they were bigger and many to a colony.  Don't know, could be a diff sp.  Definitely bigger.  I may order one or two Antfarms but I would have to mess up that terr to get those suckers out of there .


----------



## dtknow (Mar 13, 2006)

Do they like it moist? Maybe let things dry a tad and then offer a moist dark narrow place to hide...they just might move in. This is used to capture ant colonies in the wild...if workers find an area more suitable than where the colony is presently they may move the whole colony there.


----------



## Galapoheros (Mar 13, 2006)

dtknow said:
			
		

> Do they like it moist? Maybe let things dry a tad and then offer a moist dark narrow place to hide...they just might move in. This is used to capture ant colonies in the wild...if workers find an area more suitable than where the colony is presently they may move the whole colony there.


That's an idea.  But, I'm afraid the mosses and the orchids might die.  The ants seem to handle the high humidity pretty well.  I really think I have only two choices:  Let it roll or take everything out.  I might as well let it take it's course.  I've had bigger problems .  I read about the springtail hunting too.  That's why I really thought the termite idea was going to work.  I may go get a few of those larger ones I found in a different, local town and compare them.  They seemed allot bigger but I won't know until I actually compare them.  Man my sleeping hours are screwed up....going to bed.


----------



## Waspman (Mar 28, 2006)

Any new updates or findings on these guys?


----------



## Ant Worker (Mar 28, 2006)

Wow, I must say, very nice find! The species is _Odontomachus clarus_. One of the more common _Odontoachus's sp._ Very nice ants indeed, I would love to keep a colony of them. I currently keep ants, but have yet to find some _Odontomachus_, maybe this summer on vacation?

I would recommend vising the following ant forum for more care on them:
http://queenant.proboards82.com/

I'm a moderator, B-Rabbit. 

Trap jaw ants are known for being a bit hard to find their pray, try lots of different insects, and try syrup, sugar water, or honey. I've never had an at I can't get to eat it.

More photos, and updates would be greatly appreciated!


----------



## insect714 (Aug 23, 2006)

Just thought that I would add this article  about trap-jaw ants that appeared in yesterdays paper here


----------



## Canfire (Aug 23, 2006)

Thats crazy how fast they can close those jaws, they even send them flying!!!!!


----------



## angus (Aug 23, 2006)

hello Gala...

i dunno much about ants, but your colony and the tank looks very nice...and sounds its very interesting to hv a ant colony...maybe its a new target on wild collecting next time...lol..and hope u can keep upadte we about how the colony going..:clap: :clap:


----------



## Steven Gielis (Nov 24, 2006)

Any updates on this species?


----------



## Galapoheros (Nov 25, 2006)

Wow, I was surprised to see this thread pop up again.  I have seen several Trap colonies while looking around and exploring.  They are much more common than I had thought.  Not being an "ant" person (I do think they are interesting though), I had been seeing them for years but didn't realize they were trap jaws.  A couple of weeks ago, I found larvae and queens under rocks.  The ones I had in a 10 gal finally died off which I was hoping would happen.  They were just taking up too much real estate.  I don't know what they were eating but they lasted for months and I think I only had between 20 or 30 of them in there.  They killed a small T.  I couldn't keep anything else in there.  Next time, they are going in an Antfarm, if there is a next time.


----------



## zinto (Nov 30, 2006)

I think I may have mentioned this in a previous post, but here is a link to a setup that makes it very easy to not only keep ants, but to monitor them as well.  I've kept several species in this setup, and there's a lab here at the University of Arizona that has a crap load of colonies set up like this.  It works very well.  The only adaptations I would suggest is to put the test tubes toward one end of the container allowing a "garbage pile" to build up on the other end.  Good luck!
-Nick


----------



## Galapoheros (Nov 30, 2006)

zinto said:


> I think I may have mentioned this in a previous post, but here is a link to a setup that makes it very easy to not only keep ants, but to monitor them as well.  I've kept several species in this setup, and there's a lab here at the University of Arizona that has a crap load of colonies set up like this.  It works very well.  The only adaptations I would suggest is to put the test tubes toward one end of the container allowing a "garbage pile" to build up on the other end.  Good luck!
> -Nick


That's pretty different.  Pretty cool.  There is so much I want to try.  Getting out of hand.   Need to regroup.


----------



## nepenthes (Dec 17, 2006)

You can make a plaster set up really fast and easy 







Hey you should send me a specimen! JK

Test tubes would dry out and they wouldn't want to move as fast and could possibly loose the colony. But thats a risk you might want to take? I start all my colony's out in a test tube.

 

Hope they do well!


----------



## Galapoheros (Dec 20, 2006)

Those are very interesting setups!  I sometimes find colonies of big ants that have dark heads and brownish abdomens under rocks.  Maybe kind of yellow... anyway, seems like they'd be perfect for these setups.  I've never seen a real big colony. They make a large chamber under rocks where they all hang out.  I'll try to get pics next time.  I also find colonies of ants that are VERY thin under rocks and they too make a chamber under rocks.  They are allot faster than the others I mentioned and rusty red.  Sorry, I don't know much about ants so can't give any sp names.  But I understand the interest in them.


----------



## kahoy (Dec 20, 2006)

how about using a tube connected to the water on the tube? so that if the water looses, you can easily refill it.  btw, you need to find a substitute for the testtube if you want to use that method.


----------



## nepenthes (Dec 20, 2006)

You don't want it constantly full of water, other wise the water would break down the plaster. I only fill it once or twice a weak.

this is a petri dish set up I'm sure you could get creative with one of these, this is a fungus growing ant native to south western United states.And the white stuff is Hydrostone.

(not my picture)


----------



## Ant Worker (Dec 20, 2006)

nepenthes said:


> You can make a plaster set up really fast and easy
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Oh hi! Didn't know you were a member here, how did you find this forum? I'm B'rabbit on jen's message board if you remember me ;D


----------



## nepenthes (Dec 20, 2006)

Joined Saturday. See you around!


----------

