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Odontomachus

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Description

A back-lit shot of a trap-jaw ant carrying an almost mature larva. Taken at night in Singapore forest.

Quote from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odontoma…
Commonly known as trap-jaw ants, species in Odontomachus have a pair of large, straight mandibles capable of opening 180 degrees. These jaws are locked in place by an internal mechanism, and can snap shut on prey or objects when sensory hairs on the inside of the mandibles are touched. The mandibles are powerful and fast, giving the ant its common name. The mandibles either kill or maim the prey, allowing the ant to bring it back to the nest. Odontomachus can simply lock and snap its jaws again if one bite is not enough, or to cut off bits of larger food. The mandibles also permit slow and fine movements for other tasks such as nest building and care of larvae.

Trap-jaw ants of this genus have the fastest moving predatory appendages within the animal kingdom.[2] One study of Odontomachus bauri recorded peak speeds of between 126–230 kilometres per hour (78–143 mph), with the jaws closing within just 130 microseconds on average. The peak force exerted was in the order of 300 times the body weight of the ant and acceleration of 1 000 000 m/s² or 100 000 g. The ants were also observed to use their jaws as a catapult to eject intruders or fling themselves backwards to escape a threat.
Image size
1200x800px 485.59 KB
Make
Canon
Model
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Shutter Speed
1/160 second
Aperture
F/16.0
Focal Length
100 mm
ISO Speed
100
Date Taken
Oct 2, 2015, 11:06:07 PM
Sensor Size
7mm
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Comments8
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Bone-vision's avatar
What a wonderful insect.Sai mosca!