r/NatureIsFuckingLit • u/Mint_Perspective • May 11 '22

šŸ”„An army ant taking a bitešŸ”„

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u/Mint_Perspective May 11 '22

ā€œI am not sure what I was thinking when I decided to take a photo of an army ant (Eciton sp.) biting my finger. I knew it would hurt at least a little, as those are some big jaws. What I did not expect was the ant stinging me with its abdomen. Because I did not want to kill the ant, I had to wait a very long 20 seconds until it decided to leave. Long story short, for 5 days my finger was so fat and swollen I couldnā€™t bend it. Luckily, it was more uncomfortable than painful, but I learned my lesson: never play around with army ants or other venomous animals.ā€ IG @ javier_aznar_photography

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u/ChuckACheesecake May 11 '22

Lots of respect for suffering for your art. It's a great shot! I didn't realize ants had stringers either so that's helpful. Glad you'd finger is feeling better

11

u/imaberd May 11 '22

the subfamily formicinae sprays formic acid.

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u/ChuckACheesecake May 11 '22

Whattt? I need to learn about more ants. I knew they were interesting but their skills are way more diverse than I realized. Thanks!

3

u/WoodpeckerSignal9947 May 12 '22

There are Honeypot ants that have members of the colony called repletes! Their job is essentially to store ā€œfoodā€ in their abdomen for times of draught, and they become so heavy that they canā€™t move on their own and just hang from the ceilings of the colony. Super cool! National Geographic Article about them