Aphaenogaster subterranea (ant)

[Phil]

I'm pleased to report finding four worker specimens of the ant Aphaenogaster subterranea on the cliff path SW of Torteval church, in hot weather on 5/9/2014. The Guernsey BRC live maps for ants  http://www.biologicalrecordscentre.gov.gg/maps/map1.html?ant  show only one previous Guernsey record, from the same section of path, on 4/4/1980. Only one other CI record is shown, for the cliffs of SW Alderney, 21/5/1988. Of course, there may be other recent records not yet plotted on the BRC maps, which perhaps readers may post. This ant is mainly of Mediterranean and C. European distribution, but ranges to Belgium, where it is scarce.

I will submit full data to BRC in due course.

Phil Attewell

[Tintageu]

What fascinating news :)

As an amateur fan of invertebrates as a whole I have now looked at photos of this species in the hope of spotting some on my walks, but I just have two questions. 

Is it possible to identify Aphaenogaster subterranea by sight alone? And do you have any idea how it might have reached Guernsey originally, in 1980, or before it was spotted, of course?

Cheers,

Tintageu

[Simon Robson]

Awesome news well done a super find.

[Philip Attewell]

Hi Tintageu, Simon,

Thanks for your replies.

In theory it should be possible to recognise it visually, with its elongated petiole and slender, long-legged stance, but it seems I didn't at the time! I only examined my specimens from that walk this weekend, and there they were. I think I assumed all I'd got were some Myrmicas. It was a hurried last walk before making our way to the ferry home later that day. I was actually more interested in finding Plagiolepis and/or Ponera, which continue to elude me after many short trips to Guernsey (also Sark and Herm), and Aphaenogaster wasn't in my mind at all. Also amongst the ants on the path (which included Formica pratensis and Lasius sp) was a staphylinid beetle, which I'm pretty certain is Drusilla canaliculata, an ant predator, which I haven't seen on Guernsey before. Is it much recorded?

As to how the Aphaenogaster arrived in Guernsey, I can only guess that it's a part of the native fauna, subject to the island's biogeographical history. Being still in the same area as it was in 1980 must show it is well established, at least locally. It's interesting that it has also been found on Alderney. It must surely also await finding on Jersey.

Btw, my interest in finding specimens of Ponera, especially if taken in hot, dry places, such as on the coast, is to see whether they belong to P. testacea, rather than P. coarctata. Testacea has been raised to species level, and from first finding it at Dungeness, we now have it in S. England along the coast from Cornwall around to Orford in Suffolk.

Phil

On 21 September 2014 07:05, Simon Robson <s.ro...@jerseymail.co.uk> wrote:

Awesome news well done a super find.

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[Tintageu]

Hi Phil,

Thank you so much for the further information. You now have me intrigued. 

I’ve just looked for a good close-up photo of one, and it really is a magnificent beastie :)

Formicidae: Myrmicinae - Aphaenogaster subterranea

I’ve recently acquired an mpe-65 (which is a challenge in itself, but a beautiful lens).  I’ve yet to test it in the field, but will take it out to the Torteval area of the  cliffs on Wednesday when I’ll be walking with a nature-loving friend. As I only use natural light ants have always been a challenge to photograph. In the garden I often cheat and give them a little honey as they keep gratifyingly still then. But although I’ve never used such enticements in the wild, I see no reason not to take some honey to the cliffs for the sake of getting decent photos for ID. 

I’m an amateur, as I said, and not qualified to offer definite ID’s, but if I get any interesting shots of ants on my journey, I’ll post them on forum. And now I must try to do some research into the common species over here so that I can avoid posting shots of any of those :)

I’ll now be looking out for the staphylinid beetle too. A quick look at it online makes it look relatively easy to spot, thank goodness. I hope someone else can tell you if it’s been recorded over here.

And the best of luck in finding Plagiolepis and Ponera on your next trip to the islands :)

Cheers,

Tintageu

[Philip Attewell]

Thank you, Tintageu! And I wish you very good luck in finding and photographing the ants, and look forward to seeing any results. The actual stretch of the cliff path where I took my specimens was between WV 261748 and WV 257749 (on UTM, not Guernsey grid). When I have mounted my specimens, I will make an image-stacked composite of one, and post it here.

In the Hymenoptera download sheet on the BRC site, references are given for the previous Guernsey (1980) and Alderney (1988) Aphaenogaster records:

David, C. T. 1980. in Peet, T. N. D. 1980. Entomological Report for 1979. Report and Transactions of La Société Guernesiaise 20 (1979), 452-453

Austin, R. A. 1989. Entomology Section Report for 1988. Report and Transactions of La Société Guernesiaise 22 (1988), 362-370

Does anybody know how I could obtain these references, please?

There is also a code under Jersey for Aphaenogaster, which is "sjc", standing for "Societe Jersiaise collection", so presumably that means there may be a specimen(s)  from Jersey in their collection.

All best,

Phil

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[Peter Costen]

Hello Phil,

I have the two references in front of me but they do not give much information I am afraid:

1.       David 1980: In a list of new island records: “Aphaenogaster subterranea (Latr.) Guernsey 76” (that’s all).

2.       Austin 1989:  again in a list of new species (in this case to Alderney) “At Telegraph Bay, Alderney in May 1988. This is a non-British species which is uncommon on the cliffs in Guernsey” (this was also submitted by Charles David).

And if it is of any help, the specimen of Aphaenogaster subterranea in Guernsey Museum – in Charles’ collection - is labelled simply “Long Avaleux 1976”. I had to look that site up – it’s on the southern cliffs between Mont Herault and Les Tielles.

Please let me know if I can help further, but I shall be off-line tonight (relatives!)

Best wishes

Peter Costen 

 

[Philip Attewell]

Hi Peter,

Thank you so much for looking up those references, and the specimen label!

 

I can see (Le) Long Avaleux on my Bailiwick map, and it's pretty well bang-on where my specimens would have been. Amazing how the ants are still right there!

Charles is much missed, isn't he. I had been in email contact with him for a while in the year or two before he died about some of my finds when in Guernsey, mainly ants, which were one of his special interests. He had suggested meeting up at some time during one of my trips, but sadly we never did.

I am going to try to get one of his Ent Mon Mag notes, about Messor capitata in Guernsey, from RES or NHM library:

David, C. T. 1980. Messor capitata (Latr. ) (Hymenoptera:Formicidae) in Guernsey, C. I. Entomologist's Monthly Magazine 117, 58

This is of interest also because Cedric Collingwood is reporting M. capitata from Dungeness in a co-paper with myself and Andy Godfrey, and the Guernsey find is worth mentioning.

All best,

Phil

[Tintageu]

 

Thanks for all the help and best wishes, Phil :)

I've marked the location you so kindly gave on my map, have my list of gear to take, and been informed that I will be accompanied by a strong and kindly friend who is willing to act as both bearer and provider of knowledgeable company ;)

Having chanced on a past conversation you were having here with Charles (I miss him very much too) and Richard, I could only empathise with the comments made about trying to explain the photographing of ants to others.  

I can't even bring myself to ask my neighbours what they think when they see me sitting for hour after hour in my garden, camera trained on one section of a Hebe bush (I generally prefer to let my subjects come to me rather than hunt them :))  

They see a bush full of annoying beasties that would be better destroyed, whilst I'm busy exploring a fascinating and alien world full of extraordinary and beautiful wonders that's  full of unexpected happenings. Loving invertebrates on so many levels means a life of being misunderstood :)

And thank you so much for the references. I very rarely go to Town, but luckily enough, a medical appointment nearby will see me wandering in the neighbourhood of the Priaulx library tomorrow. If they have the reports there I will get photocopies for myself and will be more than happy to run off some duplicates for you too if no one else can obtain the references for you by then. 

Do let me know by first thing tomorrow if that would be helpful for you.

The weather is said to be OK for Wednesday, but the synoptic chart forecast makes me slightly doubtful. If I can't get any good shots then, I'll return once every week until I do. 

Also, I greatly look forward to seeing your composite of one of the specimens. A macro photographer friend has been encouraging me to try image stacking for some time, but life so full of different things to enjoy that I have trouble focusing sometimes (pun not intended ;)), and haven't got round to it yet, though it's obviously perfect for ID photos when using the mpe-65. 

He says I should try Zerene Stacker. I have PS CC, and understand that images can be stacked using that too. What would you recommend?

Kindest regards,

Tintageu

 

[Peter Costen]

Good Morning Phil,

 

It’s a pleasure to be involved. I have copies of all the Transactions to which Charles might have contributed, so please let me know if you need anything else (off-group if you wish). I am also involved, as a volunteer, with his collection which was given to the museum and can check the data labels of his specimens. There are about 10,000 specimens in all and it is taking some time to catalogue but, by chance, I am ‘doing’ the Hymenoptera at the moment!

 

Earlier in this thread you mentioned the possibility of there being a specimen of interest in Jersey Museum. Roger Long would be a very good starting point for that and I can send you his email address if you don’t already have it.

 

Best wishes

 

Peter

[Simon Robson]

I will be very interested in seeing your photos. C.D was such a help to me and I miss him too. May I ask if any of you are on FB? or Twitter ? As I do find the google group hard work lol or is that just me 😔. All the best to you all.  Simon Robson   Jersey 

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[Philip Attewell]

Hi Tintageu,

I sympathise with you about getting funny looks from others whilst studying bugs - I have grown well-used to being thought a nutcase over the years! Staring at tree trunks to discover if they are inhabited by Lasius brunneus or not is not advisable in one's own neighbourhood for this reason! Most notably, a couple of years ago I visited the towpath of the Regents' Canal in Islington to look for the only known GB nest of Lasius emarginatus (a common C.I. species) which had been found in a wall facing one of the locks. The towpath there is usually busy with walkers, cyclists and others at leisure, so the sight of someone peering intently over the stones of the wall for the best part of an hour, looking for god knows what, was the cause of intense curiosity! Some ventured to ask what exactly I was doing, and were very interested when they learned the reason.

For my image-stacking I use the (fairly cheap) subscription program Helicon Focus Lite, which is very good, and user-friendly. I have used Zerene Stacker with good results, but found it very hard to get to grips with. My results are acceptable, but could be improved with better equipment I think, notably the camera.

Thanks very much for offering to help with the references. As you see, Peter has said he has access to copies of most of the material, so maybe you will be able to benefit from his offer too.

I envy you going off for the cliff walk on Wednesday - I would love to be there again myself (the forecast is good, as you say, and that stretch is so glorious), but sadly will have to wait until next June (probably) before getting to Guernsey again :( I look forward to your report. Proceed slowly, and keep your eyes to the ground, stopping often to let your vision pick up the movements on and around the path...:)

All best for now,

Phil

[Philip Attewell]

Hi Simon,

I'm afraid I'm not on either Facebook or Twitter, though my other half is on FB.

I haven't yet got around to visiting Jersey, but will have to soon I think. Apart from its other attractions (other half wants to see the Zoo, as do I also) I think it must be under-recorded, for ants at least, going by records shown on the GBRC Live maps. It has so much habitat I would love to get onto and grub around on!

All best,

Phil

[Tintageu]

Hi Simon,

I’ve been inhabiting Cyberspace almost since the very start, but have never had a real-life presence there. Not a whisper :)

I have a disability which means that I am confined to my home for most of the year and so I created a rich and fascinating social life online where I inhabited only interest-led forums with a different Avatar each time, and shared my identity only with trusted, longterm off-list friends. It’s a privacy thing :D

So, not surprisingly, I’ve never had anything to do with social media.

However, I would very much like to share photos (and photographic techniques) with you, as I chanced upon your wonderful Flickr photo site recently, and it seems we have identical interests, subject-wise. So if you’d be willing to trust me with an email address where I could send some, I will do so. If you’d like to contact me on tan...@googlemail.com I will also send you my home email address off-list.

Cheers,

Tanigueu

[Tintageu]

Hi Phil,

I do apologise for the length of this post. As an amateur I know that I should ‘behave’ and only post strictly on-topic, scientific data. But this time (especially since the forum has been moribund for so many months, and I doubt that many other people are listening in) I will enjoy responding to your post in a more informal way :)

I think that being thought an eccentric or a nutcase is the best proof that one is living one’s own life, and not the life that others think one should. The secret of happiness, in my books :D

You can imagine what people think of my natural-light night macrophotography experiments :)

Thank you for suggesting that Peter Costen might help me out over getting hold of the references, but I would much prefer to find them myself at the Priaulx. As a confirmed solitary, I have always found it impossible to conform to the rules governing groups, and so cannot fairly ask anything of the estimable La Société Guernesiaise, though I have always greatly admired what they do, and I was over the moon to read what Peter said about the cataloguing of Charles’ collection :)

To visit the Priaulx library is always a huge pleasure for me. When I first wandered in there, at eleven years old, I had no idea that it was to change my life. I was a slum kid. We only had two books in our family home, a Bible (never opened) and a Cookery Book (thankfully opened every day :)). School never instilled a love of learning in me, in fact, quite the opposite, but that library made me realise what a world of treasures lay within the covers of books.

I am now ‘well read’ with over 2000 much-loved books in my home, and a few bits of paper in a drawer that mean I can put letters after my name, but I never do. The Priaulx Library changed my life by revealing that anyone can teach themselves any subject as long as they have curiosity and books to hand. And I will re-live that first moment when I step through those doors again today, and enjoy the never-waning excitement of seeing what new books they have acquired :)

However I am still money-poor (though rich in everything that matters). Partly because of my disability, but mostly because I chose to be. Money and more possessions than I really need would complicate the simple life I need in order to remain contented, and by observation I don’t like how too much money changes people.

But I digress.

Thank you so much for the suggestion of using Helicon stacker. If Zerene is less user-friendly I will definitely try Helicon first.

You mention needing better equipment, and I think that macro photography is definitely one of those areas where the workman definitely can blame the tools :)

I have a 5DII, a Canon 100mm, an mpe-65, some accessories, and a huge bank loan to pay off as a consequence, but it was worth it :D  What do you have on your wish list?

As for the cliff walk, should I find the right species I will post the photos here on Thursday as that would be on-topic.

I will follow your sage advice, though I have to admit to always walking slowly when I see ants on the cliff paths as I’m hopelessly soft about invertebrates and try not to tread on them :)

I have told my companion to stop being so vain and to wear his glasses this time so that he can help me spot them :D

Phil, I’m hoping that you might grant me a favour. I would be very honoured if you would contact me off-list on tan...@googlemail.com as I am currently writing a book in which ants play their part, and particularly their physiology and behaviour, and although I don’t know you, your enthusiasm for your subject is infectious, and, if you would be willing, I would be so grateful if you would agree to occasionally advise me on questions regarding ants that I can’t find the answers to elsewhere. I would promise to look very hard for the answers first, of course :)

Invertebrate macro photography has been my focus for several years now, and I do love ants, so, in return, I would be very happy to send you any photos I get of ants over here which are out of the ordinary.

I probably won't be on the forum for much longer as it was never very busy and then went completely flat after Charles died, until your very welcome arrival :). I'd love to see a thriving inter-island natural history forum created where amateurs and experts alike could share knowledge (and not using Google Groups as I find them as difficult to navigate as Simon does). But sadly I don't have the time to set one up, and I assume that no one else has either.

Hoping to have something worth posting by Thursday, but that lens is notoriously difficult to handle in the field, and I’ve only had one practice session with it so far in the garden, on a quiet day, so may need a few more goes to get it right :) I will not give up, however.

Cheers,

Tanigeu

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[Simon Robson]

Hi My email is simonro...@gmail.com Please feel free (to anyone) to share photos or tips My FB page wall thingy is https://www.facebook.com/simon.robson.sr Hope to hear from you sometime.

Regards and take care
Simon

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[andy...@guernsey.net]

 

As Tintageu says, since Charles’ passing, this forum has been moribund, but for those of you not on Facebook’s two relevant group pages, I will share some recent Guernsey sightings of interest.

 

European Swallowtail: seen 16th & 17th Sept due west of Pleinmont TV mast on cliff path.

Long-tailed Blue: seen 16th Sept in same location as Swallowtail

Queen of Spain Fritillary: seen 9th, 10th, 17th, 20th, 22nd & 23rd Sept usually west of Mont Herault but on one occasion west of Pleinmont TV mast below cliff path in valley

Brown Argus: individuals seen 9th & 16th west of Mont Herault and west of Pleinmont TV mast below cliff path in valley.

 

All species have been photographed and identity confirmed.

 

None of these species are known to be resident although Brown Argus is established on Sark.

 

 

  Andy Smith.

 

 

[Tintageu]

Simon,

I’ll be most happy to accept your invitation. I’m always happy to share photos and talk macrophotography :)

And thank you so much for the link to your Facebook page. 

I currently view any Facebook pages of interest courtesy of my daughter’s account (She knows I would never invade her privacy by looking at her page, though she hasn’t used it for years), but I'm now wondering if I could set up one of my own instead that would just allow me to access pages such as yours and Andy's without functioning as a portal. My daughter leaving home this year was the signal for me to start writing the book in earnest, so I don’t need the temptation of an open Facebook page to distract me :D

I can’t view your page just now as she’s logged out and is sleeping at the moment (back home for a few days of re-living her hedonistic childhood :)). I don’t want to log in until I ask her permission in case there’s a reason for it. 

I’ll write on Thursday morning as I will be out for most of today on the cliffs, and I don’t go in for those new-fangled mobile whatsit thingies :D When I go for a leisurely walk by in our breathtakingly beautiful islands with a fascinating companion (my favourite social pass-time) the last thing I need is to have the moment punctuated by a phone ringing ;)

But I’m happily rambling once more and will stop there :)

Talk soon,

Tanigeu

[Tintageu]

Andy,

Reading your post on waking was a perfect way to start my ant-hunt day. I had no idea that there was a Facebook page dedicated to local butterflies, and this is such a co-incidence because I was out walking with today’s companion last week when I commented on how few native species we seemed to have over here. He said he’d never thought about it before, and when I asked him to list those he’d seen on a regular basis (as an amateur, like me) he couldn’t get past ten.

Then we started wondering about why we have so few. Is it our insular nature, or lack of suitable habitats? Did we have a greater variety in the past? Have modern farming practices or building development played a part?

I do remember seeing much more exotic species when I was younger, but had always put that down to the rather leaky Butterfly Farm which I’m thinking must have been a rather pesky confounding factor for butterfly recorders in the past. Is there any possible way to distinguish a farmed or pet butterfly from one that is naturally resident or migratory? Genetics apart, of course ;) And did any of the escaped farmed butterflies set up residence here, if only for a while?

Sorry about all the questions. I never lost my childhood curiosity, and it’s always such a pleasure to find others who love invertebrates that I do tend to talk too much when I do :)  Please feel free to email me privately with the answers, if you’re willing, and if they’re not considered to be on topic here.

Photographically, I tend to concentrate on the less obviously-beautiful creatures, however, butterflies are always a delight so I take photos of them whenever the little so-and-so’s perch long enough to allow it and I would be delighted to contribute photos of any unusual finds to your Facebook group. 

I would be very grateful if you would send me the link via tan...@googlemail.com and then I can get an idea of the kinds of contributions you are after.

I will be using the mpe-65 and tripod today (getting very excited about that ant hunt :)), but will take the GX7 along as well so that I don’t miss anything fleeting that might be of interest to you. 

In the meantime, a bit off-topic, but for sheer pleasure, I’ll post an old photo of a copper enjoying itself in my back garden a couple of years ago (I’m still working on the art of butterfly portraiture ;)).

Sadly there is a huge amount of building work currently going on all around me, and with the wonderfully ‘neglected’ field at the bottom of my garden being developed on, the amount of species of all kinds of creatures around here have been decimated. I try not to cry, but I have, especially when I see the trees, hedgerows and old drystone walls being bulldozed. I cannot believe how much the developer has quite legally been allowed to destroy (only a handful of protected trees left). I find it hard to bear seeing ‘Old Guernsey’ disappearing bit-by-bit.

But this is a reminder of better days, when I never had to leave my (interestingly wild) garden in order to find something interesting to take photos of.

Kindest regards,

Tanigeu

[Tintageu]

Dear Phil,

Sincerest apologies. My attention is not where it should be in this busy week and I have only just realised that I have been going off-topic on your thread by talking about butterflies at length. My enthusiasm for things that interest me always tends to overrule everything else, and I did not mean to be discourteous. 

In future I will only post ant photos here and start a new topic if I need to discuss anything else.

All equipment for the expedition is now packed, and I cannot wait to set off :)

Cheers,

Tanitgeu

[Ritchie, Alan]

Andy,

 

That’s an impressive list of butterfly sightings. Are you notifying Rich and Margaret Austin, moth and butterfly recorders of Entomological Section, La Société Guernesiaise  (richmond...@gmail.com, I think) or the Biological Record Centre http://www.biologicalrecordscentre.gov.gg/files/submitrecord.html ?

Jane Gilmour, with Julia Henney, has ably taken over the GBRC record keeping work established by Charles.

 

Regards,

Alan Ritchie

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[Philip Attewell]

Good luck with that hunt, Tintageu!! I will contact you about the other things on your email address.

And thank you Simon for your contact details.

All best,

Phil

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[Tintageu]

Dear Phil, Simon and Andy,

I've just got home from a wonderful ant hunt. The weather was breezy with hot sun and chilly clouds in quick succession, and there were few ants to be seen, but I am still sorting through the shots I took and trying to ID them. With any luck will need help to ID a couple of butterflies too :)

Phil, I will send any interesting results to you directly, as I won't be posting here any more. Your wonderful find is mightily hard to ID when photographed from above :D I have learned much from this expedition...

Simon and Andy, thanks for everything. I'll be in touch very soon. As I wake all ready to start my day at 2 am, this is my bedtime now, and I am always too sleepy to write much at this time of day ;)

Heartfelt thanks for offering me other ways of keeping in contact, and also for showing me that there are alternative ways of sharing local natural history finds more suited to amateurs like me. I hope to be able to make useful contributions in the coming years.

No need to reply to this on list, of course :)

Cheerie,

Tintageu

[andy...@guernsey.net]

Hello Alan

 

yes, all my sightings go to Rich and Margaret, are copied across to GBRC and get sent to Butterfly Conservation for inclusion in the continuing Millennium survey updates. I’ve been recording since the mid 1990s  and have every intention of continuing until I drop! I have a particular interest in the Glanville Fritillary, and work with Ian Hall, Guernsey’s other ‘butterfly nut’ to try to cover as much ground as possible. I work shifts so am lucky enough to be able to go recording on a good proportion of decent days.

 

  Best regards,

 

   Andy Smith