Bullet Ant Sting
The pain caused by this insect's sting is known to be greater than that of any other Hymenopteran, and is ranked as the most painful according to the Schmidt Sting Pain Index, given a "4+" rating, above the tarantula hawk wasp.
It is described as causing "waves of burning, throbbing, all-consuming pain that continues unabated for up to 24 hours". It is thought that the ant has evolved this way to ward off any predators who would normally unearth them....a paralyzing neurotoxic peptide isolated from the venom is poneratoxin, it affects voltage-dependent sodium ion channels and blocks the synaptic transmission in the insect central nervous system.
The Satere-Mawe people of Brazil use intentional bullet ant stings as part of their initiation rites to become a warrior.The ants are first rendered unconscious by submerging them in a natural sedative and then hundreds of them are woven into a glove made out of leaves (which resembles a large oven mitt), stinger facing inward. When the ants regain consciousness, a boy slips the glove onto his hand. The goal of this initiation rite is to keep the glove on for a full ten minutes. When finished, the boy's hand and part of his arm are temporarily paralyzed because of the ant venom, and he may shake uncontrollably for days. The only "protection" provided is a coating of charcoal on the hands, supposedly to confuse the ants and inhibit their stinging. To fully complete the initiation, however, the boys must go through the ordeal a total of 20 times over the course of several months or even years...macromicroextreme macrosextreme macromacrographyphotomacrographystackingapiladocloseupsnic320nico320nicolas reusensnatureinsectinsects
83 pictures Stacked in Zerene Stacker Pmax
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Cephalotini is a tribe of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae. Although they are wingless, biologists have observed them gliding.They will glide back to the trunk of their tree, which is much safer than the ground or water below. They are among a number of groups of gliding ants. They feed mainly on nectar and avian excretion.
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Cephalotini es una tribu de hormigas perteneciente a la subfamilia Myrmicinae. A pesar de que no tienen alas, los biólogos han observado que pueden planear saltando desde los árboles y controlando la dirección de la caÃda.Se deslizan nuevamente al tronco de su árbol, que es mucho más seguro que el suelo o el agua de abajo. Se encuentran entre una serie de grupos de hormigas voladoras. Se alimentan principalmente de néctar y excreción aviar.
64 pictures stacked in Zerene of this wonderful ant from the peruvian amazon
Possible Specie: Daceton Boltoni (Subfamily: Myrmicinae Genus: Daceton)macromicroextreme macrosextreme macromacrographyphotomacrographystackingapiladocloseupsnic320nico320nicolas reusensnatureinsectinsects
