[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":373},["ShallowReactive",2],{"species-sheet-\u002Fspecies\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea":3},{"species":4,"profile":241,"countryNames":278,"lookalikes":290,"similar":295,"posts":352},{"id":5,"authority":6,"colonyStructure":7,"confidence":8,"countries":12,"defense":24,"diet":27,"difficulty":30,"dryHumidity":31,"escapeRisk":9,"estimated":32,"experience":38,"extension":39,"finder":40,"founding":41,"growth":42,"guide":31,"hibernation":43,"hibernationMonths":44,"hibernationTemperature":47,"humidity":50,"image":53,"imageCredit":54,"imageHeight":58,"imageWidth":59,"interests":31,"keptSince":31,"legal":60,"lookalikes":63,"majorSize":31,"maxWorkers":67,"meta":68,"nests":69,"nuptialFlightMonths":73,"nuptialFlightTime":31,"nuptialFlightTriggers":31,"polymorphism":76,"queenSize":77,"regions":80,"relatedPosts":83,"reviewedAt":62,"scientificName":87,"sources":88,"stem":227,"subfamily":228,"temperature":229,"tribe":232,"workerSize":233,"__hash__":235,"slug":236,"genus":237,"nickname":238,"aliases":239,"tagline":240},"species\u002Fspecies\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea.yml","(Latreille, 1798)","polygyne",{"biology":9,"husbandry":10,"nuptialFlight":11},"high","medium","low",[13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23],"ES","PT","FR","IT","CH","DE","SI","HR","GR","BG","TR",[25,26],"bite","acid",[28,29],"sugar","insects","5",null,[33,34,35,36,37],"humidity","hibernationTemperature","nuptialFlightMonths","queenSize","maxWorkers","compiled","yml",false,"claustral","moderate","recommended",[45,46],11,2,[48,49],10,15,[51,52],50,60,"https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.brumaants.com\u002Fimages\u002Fspecies\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea.jpg",{"author":55,"license":56,"url":57},"Philipp Hoenle (myrmecophil)","CC0 1.0","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.inaturalist.org\u002Fobservations\u002F207801045",800,1200,{"status":61,"checked":62},"free","2026-10-11",[64,65,66],"Plagiolepis schmitzii","Plagiolepis pyrenaica","Solenopsis fugax",5000,{},[70,71,72],"ytong","sandwich","testTube",[74,75],6,8,"monomorphic",[78,79],3,4.5,[81,82],"europe","middleEast",[84,85,86],"how-to-make-a-ytong-nest","how-to-hibernate-your-ants","how-to-make-a-test-tube-setup-tutorial","Plagiolepis pygmaea",[89,96,100,105,109,113,118,123,127,131,135,139,143,147,151,155,159,163,169,174,178,182,186,190,194,198,202,206,210,215,219,223],{"type":90,"title":91,"url":92,"covers":93},"paper","Passera, Gilbert and Aron (2001), Insectes Sociaux: Social parasitism in ants, effects of the inquiline Plagiolepis xene on queen distribution and worker production of its host Plagiolepis pygmaea (nests in south-facing embankments, seasonal polydomy, budding, laboratory colonies overwintered at 12 °C and kept for years on honey)","https:\u002F\u002Fdoi.org\u002F10.1007\u002FPL00001749",[94,95],"biology","husbandry",{"type":90,"title":97,"url":98,"covers":99},"Trontti, Aron and Sundström (2005), Molecular Ecology: Inbreeding and kinship in the ant Plagiolepis pygmaea (5 to 35 queens per nest, mating inside the nest, colony reproduction by budding)","https:\u002F\u002Fdoi.org\u002F10.1111\u002Fj.1365-294X.2005.02529.x",[94],{"type":90,"title":101,"url":102,"covers":103},"Thurin and Aron (2009), Journal of Evolutionary Biology: Sib-mating in the ant Plagiolepis pygmaea, adaptive inbreeding? (colonies with several hundred queens, low male dispersal, workers repel foreign males)","https:\u002F\u002Fdoi.org\u002F10.1111\u002Fj.1420-9101.2009.01864.x",[94,104],"nuptialFlight",{"type":90,"title":106,"url":107,"covers":108},"Thurin and Aron (2008), Animal Behaviour: Seasonal nestmate recognition in the polydomous ant Plagiolepis pygmaea (workers of one colony never fight, but always attack other colonies)","https:\u002F\u002Fdoi.org\u002F10.1016\u002Fj.anbehav.2007.08.013",[94],{"type":90,"title":110,"url":111,"covers":112},"Trontti, Thurin, Sundström and Aron (2007), Behavioral Ecology: Mating for convenience or genetic diversity? Mating patterns in the polygynous ant Plagiolepis pygmaea","https:\u002F\u002Fdoi.org\u002F10.1093\u002Fbeheco\u002Farl083",[94],{"type":114,"title":115,"url":116,"covers":117},"careSheet","formicarium.it: Scheda Plagiolepis pygmaea","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.formicarium.it\u002Fformiche-italiane\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea\u002F",[95,94],{"type":119,"title":120,"url":121,"covers":122},"forum","formicarium.it forum: Diario allevamento Plagiolepis pygmaea (three queens caught in June, first workers after about six weeks, two queens killed the third)","https:\u002F\u002Fformicarium.it\u002Fviewtopic.php?t=964",[95,104],{"type":119,"title":124,"url":125,"covers":126},"formicarium.it forum: Diario Plagiolepis pygmaea by humblebee (three queens and thirty workers from a stone in April, about 120 workers by August, crystallized honey)","https:\u002F\u002Fformicarium.it\u002Fviewtopic.php?t=6477",[95],{"type":119,"title":128,"url":129,"covers":130},"formicarium.it forum: Le piccole Plagiolepis pygmaea (single queen from a polygynous nest, vaseline and moat as barrier, escapes and deaths)","https:\u002F\u002Fformicarium.it\u002Fviewtopic.php?t=4181",[95],{"type":119,"title":132,"url":133,"covers":134},"formicarium.it forum: Regine trovate a Roma (tiny queens found in Rome in early June, species not yet confirmed; an experienced keeper says such queens always found a colony and are easy to raise, but the nest must be hermetically closed and not porous)","https:\u002F\u002Fformicarium.it\u002Fviewtopic.php?t=4239",[95,104],{"type":119,"title":136,"url":137,"covers":138},"formicarium.it forum: Trasferimento Plagiolepis pygmaea (three queens against single queens, plaster mini-nests, dry nest)","https:\u002F\u002Fformicarium.it\u002Fviewtopic.php?t=4883",[95],{"type":114,"title":140,"url":141,"covers":142},"Antstore: Plagiolepis pygmaea","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.antstore.net\u002Fshop\u002Fen\u002Fants\u002FAnts-from-South-Europe\u002FPlagiolepis-pygmaea.html",[95,94,104],{"type":114,"title":144,"url":145,"covers":146},"Ameisenhaltung.de: Artenverzeichnis, Plagiolepis pygmaea (honeypot workers, endangered in Germany)","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.ameisenhaltung.de\u002Fartenverzeichnis\u002Fentry\u002F271-plagiolepis-pygmaea\u002F",[95,94,104],{"type":114,"title":148,"url":149,"covers":150},"Hormigueando: Ficha de cria de Plagiolepis pygmaea","https:\u002F\u002Fhormigueando.com\u002Ffichas-de-cria\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea\u002F",[95,94,104],{"type":114,"title":152,"url":153,"covers":154},"FormicaMarket: Plagiolepis pygmaea care guide","https:\u002F\u002Fformicamarket.com\u002Fen\u002Fspecies\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea",[95,104],{"type":114,"title":156,"url":157,"covers":158},"AntScout: Plagiolepis pygmaea (care sheet compiled from the literature)","https:\u002F\u002Fantscout.com\u002Fspecies\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea",[95,94],{"type":114,"title":160,"url":161,"covers":162},"Ant Shack: Plagiolepis pygmaea care sheet","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.ant-shack.com\u002Fpages\u002Fencyclopedia-entry\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea",[95],{"type":164,"title":165,"url":166,"covers":167},"reference","DEpository: Plagiolepis pygmaea (fauna of Germany, winged ants in July and August, colonies spread by division)","https:\u002F\u002Fwwwuser.gwdguser.de\u002F~nprpic\u002Fwebrepository\u002Fmetazoa\u002Farthropoda\u002Finsecta\u002Fhymenoptera\u002Fformicidae\u002Fplagiolepis\u002Fplagiolepispyg.html",[168,94,104],"distribution",{"type":164,"title":170,"url":171,"covers":172},"AntCat: Plagiolepis pygmaea (Latreille, 1798), valid species of the Formicinae","https:\u002F\u002Fantcat.org\u002Fcatalog\u002F444985",[173],"taxonomy",{"type":164,"title":175,"url":176,"covers":177},"AntWiki: Plagiolepis pygmaea","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.antwiki.org\u002Fwiki\u002FPlagiolepis_pygmaea",[173,168,94],{"type":164,"title":179,"url":180,"covers":181},"Antkeeping.info: Plagiolepis pygmaea (country list and sizes taken from AntWiki)","https:\u002F\u002Fantkeeping.info\u002Fants\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea\u002F",[173,168,94],{"type":164,"title":183,"url":184,"covers":185},"Wikipedia: Plagiolepis pygmaea (range from Portugal and the Canary Islands to Iran, after Boer 2008)","https:\u002F\u002Fen.wikipedia.org\u002Fwiki\u002FPlagiolepis_pygmaea",[173,168],{"type":164,"title":187,"url":188,"covers":189},"AntCat: Plagiolepis barbara Santschi, 1911 (the North African ant first described as a variety of P. pygmaea from Tunisia and Algeria, now a valid species, so old North African pygmaea records are not counted in the native range)","https:\u002F\u002Fantcat.org\u002Fcatalog\u002F444913",[173,168],{"type":164,"title":191,"url":192,"covers":193},"Alarcón: Claves de identificación de obreras de Plagiolepis de la Península Ibérica (funicular proportions used to separate P. pygmaea from P. schmitzii)","https:\u002F\u002Fpacoalarcon.com\u002Fformicidae\u002Fclaves_plagiolepis.pdf",[173],{"type":164,"title":195,"url":196,"covers":197},"Dictionnaire amoureux des fourmis: Plagiolepis (taxonomic history of the genus and the cryptic pygmaea, taurica and pyrenaica group)","https:\u002F\u002Fdictionnaire-amoureux-des-fourmis.fr\u002FEspeces\u002FPlagiolepis\u002FPlagiolepis.htm",[173,94],{"type":90,"title":199,"url":200,"covers":201},"Trigos-Peral and Czechowski (2025), Fragmenta Faunistica: Plagiolepis pygmaea, an introduced ant species new to Poland (northernmost record, not part of the native range)","https:\u002F\u002Fdoi.org\u002F10.3161\u002F00159301ff2025.68.1.06",[168],{"type":164,"title":203,"url":204,"covers":205},"AntFlights: Plagiolepis pygmaea, one flight record (Andalucia, 12 July 2026, 22:50, 25 °C, calm, confirmation pending)","https:\u002F\u002Fantflights.com\u002Fstats\u002Fflights\u002FPlagiolepis\u002Fpygmaea",[104],{"type":164,"title":207,"url":208,"covers":209},"GBIF: Plagiolepis pygmaea (Latreille, 1798), occurrence records by country","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gbif.org\u002Fspecies\u002F1320777",[173,168],{"type":164,"title":211,"url":212,"covers":213},"EU list of invasive alien species of Union concern (Implementing Regulation 2016\u002F1141, consolidated)","https:\u002F\u002Feur-lex.europa.eu\u002Feli\u002Freg_impl\u002F2016\u002F1141\u002Foj",[214],"legal",{"type":164,"title":216,"url":217,"covers":218},"Bundesartenschutzverordnung (BArtSchV), Anlage 1: protected species in Germany (only Formica among the ants)","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gesetze-im-internet.de\u002Fbartschv_2005\u002Fanlage_1.html",[214],{"type":164,"title":220,"url":221,"covers":222},"MITECO: Spanish Catalogue of Invasive Alien Species, arthropods","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.miteco.gob.es\u002Fen\u002Fbiodiversidad\u002Ftemas\u002Fconservacion-de-especies\u002Fespecies-exoticas-invasoras\u002Fce_eei_artropodos_nc.html",[214],{"type":164,"title":224,"url":225,"covers":226},"Japan Ministry of the Environment: list of designated invasive alien species (Invasive Alien Species Act)","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.env.go.jp\u002Fnature\u002Fintro\u002F2outline\u002Flist.html",[214],"species\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea","Formicinae",[230,231],21,28,"Plagiolepidini",[234,46],1.3,"R3sdXVlMaNgaA1dYN-98kPsDJ0i9zOegVHxnfpzOxl8","plagiolepis-pygmaea","Plagiolepis","",[],"A pinhead-sized, sun-loving ant that lives in networks of many-queened nests and slips through the smallest gap.",{"id":242,"title":243,"aliases":239,"body":244,"description":238,"extension":249,"faqs":250,"identification":260,"language":261,"meta":262,"navigation":263,"nickname":238,"notes":264,"path":275,"seo":276,"stem":227,"tagline":240,"__hash__":277},"speciesProfiles\u002Fspecies\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea.md","Plagiolepis Pygmaea",{"type":245,"value":246,"toc":247},"minimark",[],{"title":238,"searchDepth":46,"depth":46,"links":248},[],"md",[251,254,257],{"question":252,"answer":253},"Can one Plagiolepis pygmaea queen found a colony alone?","Yes. In nature colonies mostly spread by budding, when new queens and workers settle in a nearby nest, but keepers report that single queens or small groups raise their first workers in a test tube without being fed. Groups seem to do better: one Italian keeper had about thirty workers from three queens by the end of July, while single queens had only three or four. Groups can also thin out, though, since in two reports a group of queens ended up with just one.",{"question":255,"answer":256},"Why does Plagiolepis pygmaea live in so many nests at once?","A colony is spread over several nests that swap workers, brood and queens, which is called polydomy. In a French field study the colonies split into many nests close together in spring and merged again in late summer for the winter. Most nests held only workers, while the queens were clustered in a few of them.",{"question":258,"answer":259},"Can I put two Plagiolepis pygmaea colonies together?","Better not. In a study of a natural population in southern France, workers from different nests of the same colony never fought, but they were always hostile to workers of other colonies, however close or related those were. The workers also drive off unrelated males, so keep colonies collected at different places apart.","Minute, shiny brown to blackish workers, often with paler yellowish legs and antennae, so small they look like moving specks, and with abdomens that swell round when they are full of liquid food. Several very similar Plagiolepis species exist, so a sure identification needs a microscope: the differences are tiny details such as the proportions of the antennal segments.","en",{},true,[265,268,271,273],{"kind":266,"text":267},"tip","Offer sugar as a smear of crystallized honey or on a tiny scrap of foil, and keep any cotton only lightly moist: a single drop or a soggy plug can trap or drown several workers at once.",{"kind":269,"text":270},"watchOut","Plan the escape barrier before the first workers hatch, and watch every joint: workers crowd into the thin gap between a test tube and its plug or a connecting tube, and Italian keepers lost many there, either crushed when the plastic expanded again after the winter rest or killed by accident when the plug was opened.",{"kind":266,"text":272},"Copy their natural habitat of sun-warmed, dry ground with stones. Give the nest a warm side and a drier zone next to the damp brood chambers, and let the colony choose where to put the brood.",{"kind":269,"text":274},"Offer tiny dead prey such as fruit flies or pieces of mosquito, because Italian keepers advise against live insects for ants this small (springtails are the exception), and remove leftovers before they grow mold. Sugar is the staple and laboratory colonies have even lived for years on honey alone, but small protein portions at regular intervals feed a fast-growing brood.","\u002Fspecies\u002Fplagiolepis-pygmaea",{"description":238},"rw-HHVO2MUBC59Gq0jWhQJ4QVP_ZUOI2gxyxNdkH8Io",[279,280,281,282,283,284,285,286,287,288,289],"Bulgaria","Croatia","France","Germany","Greece","Italy","Portugal","Slovenia","Spain","Switzerland","Türkiye",[291,292,293],{"name":64,"slug":31},{"name":65,"slug":31},{"name":66,"slug":294},"solenopsis-fugax",[296,319,337],{"slug":297,"scientificName":298,"genus":299,"nickname":300,"aliases":301,"tagline":304,"image":305,"experience":38,"guide":31,"difficulty":30,"workerSize":306,"majorSize":49,"queenSize":307,"temperature":309,"hibernation":312,"hibernationTemperature":313,"hibernationBand":314,"sizeClass":315,"founding":41,"colonyStructure":316,"regions":317},"camponotus-cruentatus","Camponotus cruentatus","Camponotus","Blood-spotted sugar ant",[302,303],"Blood-stained carpenter ant","Blood-red carpenter ant","A matte-black Mediterranean giant with a rust-red band across its gaster, shy while small and fiercely territorial once the colony grows.","https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.brumaants.com\u002Fimages\u002Fspecies\u002Fcamponotus-cruentatus.jpg",[74,48],[49,308],18,[310,311],25,30,"required",[48,49],"cool","large","monogyne",[81,318],"northAfrica",{"slug":320,"scientificName":321,"genus":322,"nickname":238,"aliases":323,"tagline":324,"image":325,"experience":38,"guide":31,"difficulty":326,"workerSize":327,"majorSize":31,"queenSize":329,"temperature":331,"hibernation":43,"hibernationTemperature":334,"hibernationBand":314,"sizeClass":10,"founding":41,"colonyStructure":316,"regions":336},"aphaenogaster-subterranea","Aphaenogaster subterranea","Aphaenogaster",[],"A slender, secretive forest ant that nests under stones, hunts quietly in the leaf litter and carries sweet liquids home on soaked grains of soil.","https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.brumaants.com\u002Fimages\u002Fspecies\u002Faphaenogaster-subterranea.jpg","4",[78,328],5,[330,75],7,[332,333],20,26,[75,335],12,[81],{"slug":338,"scientificName":339,"genus":299,"nickname":340,"aliases":341,"tagline":342,"image":343,"experience":38,"guide":31,"difficulty":326,"workerSize":344,"majorSize":345,"queenSize":346,"temperature":347,"hibernation":43,"hibernationTemperature":349,"hibernationBand":314,"sizeClass":315,"founding":41,"colonyStructure":316,"regions":350},"camponotus-japonicus","Camponotus japonicus","Japanese carpenter ant",[],"A sturdy, matte-black giant of East Asian fields and parks that builds up slowly, yet can follow the same queen for many years.","https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.brumaants.com\u002Fimages\u002Fspecies\u002Fcamponotus-japonicus.jpg",[74,335],14,[49,308],[348,231],22,[75,335],[351],"asia",[353,360,367],{"id":354,"title":355,"description":356,"image":357,"categoryText":358,"path":359},"blog\u002Fhow-to-make-a-ytong-nest.md","How To Make a Ytong Nest - Ant Keeping Tutorial","In this tutorial, you will learn how to make a Ytong nest for your ant colonies! This is one of the best nest types for many ant species!","https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.brumaants.com\u002Fimages\u002Fbruma_ants_thumbnail_ytong_ant_nest_tutorial.png","Tutorials & D.I.Y.","\u002Fhow-to-make-a-ytong-nest",{"id":361,"title":362,"description":363,"image":364,"categoryText":365,"path":366},"blog\u002Fhow-to-hibernate-your-ants.md","How To Hibernate Your Ants - Hibernation Tutorial","In this guide, we’re going to talk about hibernation: What is it? Why do ants need hibernation? Should I hibernate my ants? Let's see!","https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.brumaants.com\u002Fimages\u002Fbruma_ants_thumbnail_hibernation_guide.png","Ant Keeping Basics","\u002Fhow-to-hibernate-your-ants",{"id":368,"title":369,"description":370,"image":371,"categoryText":365,"path":372},"blog\u002Fhow-to-make-a-test-tube-setup-tutorial.md","How To Make a Test Tube Setup - Ant Keeping Basics","In this tutorial you will learn how to make a test tube setup, the best way to create the optimal environment for a newly mated queen ant!","https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.brumaants.com\u002Fimages\u002Fbruma_ants_thumbnail_test_tube_setup_tutorial_new.png","\u002Fhow-to-make-a-test-tube-setup-tutorial",1791900226947]