Four Norn Groups: One C2 Ant Super Colony

In the blink of an eye, the empty Creatures 2 world I had spent so long setting up was virtually overrun with Albian Ant Norns. It was all planned, of course, but going from zero to sixteen total Norns certainly made for a mad dash! This world, named Colony Twelve, was inhabited by four separate groups of Norns. The first was the Allomerus group, comprised of an even two females and two males. They hatched in the pond garden, and Allomerus 1 and Allomerus 3 shared a rather loving friendship near the pond dock. They appeared content with little exploration.

On the other hand, Allomerus 2 disappeared from the group, seemingly lost among the luscious undergrowth. I found her wandering along the bridges and terraces, where it seemed she was quite interested in the distant waterfall. I imagined that each group would rarely venture far from their starting position, but this behavior indicated that the mixing of groups might not be as difficult as initially intended! Note that due to their short lifespans and sheer numbers, I plan to treat these Norns more as subjects for study with no interaction. I still adore them, though!

The final member of the Allomerus group was Allomerus 4. He stuck around the garden region, not quite sure what to do. Both females were rather preoccupied, although they had some time before they would even consider ushering in a new generation. This Norn eventually turned away from familiar territory to test out the bridge that Allomerus 2 had first taken. Though brave, he wasn’t brave enough to stray far for too long! This led me to wonder if the exploratory behavior of one female could be representative: Would other females be inclined to explore? Or was this an isolated incident?

The second group was named the Ectatomma group, which was the smallest one with just two females and one male. Ectatomma 1 almost immediately abandoned her birthing place near the seaside beehives to investigate the large bridge. Not long after, Ectatomma 2 and Ectatomma 3 were just a step behind! Their food source was a little smaller compared to the other regions, though there was plenty to sustain these three Norns. Were they simply exploring, or was this some sort of migration before their group grew? I also wondered if they would stay together.

The lowest level of the world, and arguably the most rich in food, belonged to the Myrmica group. This was the scene of my failed attempt at raising Albian Ant Norns in the past due to the sheer size of the region: One wandering Norn could spell the end of the population. This was the largest group with two females and three males, though the group quickly fractured. Myrmica 4 and Myrmica 5 made it over to the land of the aubergines, where they promptly became ill. The sickness was short-lived, thankfully, with no apparent long term side effects.

The two females, Myrmica 1 and Myrmica 2, tried out the fabled aubergines, yet decided that their original hatching place in the garden was more to their style. These two Norns exhibited the first cooperative relationship between females: The other two groups had females who were not very attached to one another. Myrmica 1 and Myrmica 2 seemed inseparable: Whatever one did, the other was quick to follow! This continued even when they made a return trip up the bridge. Might both of these females become co-queens, or would one ultimately gain dominance?

Myrmica 3 remained left out, much in the same way that Allomerus 4 seemed unsure of where to go and what to do. At one point it looked like he was going to head off in the direction of the swamp and volcano, which would surely spell his doom. He thought better of venturing forth into the dangerous region of the world, and instead decided to go in search of the other Myrmica Norns. Interestingly enough, his short spell of solitude made him quite the sociable fellow. Or was that just the fact that the others had not interacted with him that much? He certainly was shiny and new!

Last, but not least, was the Tetramorium group who inhabited the familiar region around the Norn incubator. This was another balanced group, with two females and two males. Tetramorium 1 and Tetramorium 2 demonstrated another female friendship, with the two staying very close together. I assumed that this group would be the most likely to stay in their original position: Creatures 2 Norns have never been known for their adeptness at using lifts to reach different areas of the world. The other groups had already surprised me, though, so I couldn’t put all my trust in this idea.

Tetramorium 3 and Tetramorium 4 demonstrated the best way to ignore the other! They seemed content to live on their own for the time being, although the small area meant that they likely would be unable to stay isolated. Ants are supposed to be social!

So I was left with sixteen young Norns, all ready to live their lives. By the way, the COB I used to unpause all eggs that had been touched worked immensely well… They all hatched at once, as indicated by their ages! I expect that the updates about this world will be more objective and documentary in nature. Hopefully it’s a bit of a different pace that ties in with the real life study of different species. Sometimes entire generations might be skipped over in the interest of making sure that this colony thrives. Otherwise, I would likely need to post updates after every few minutes of in-game time! That works for some of my other worlds, yet I wanted to do something different with Creatures 2. It’s been wonderful to watch these Norns so far. With four separate groups, there was rarely a dull moment! Remember that breeding extends the lifespan of females, but decreases the lifespan of males. I expect each group to have a different dynamic when it comes to their queen or queens. The Albian Ant Norn is quite an interesting breed!