Odontomachus
Encyclopedia
Odontomachus is a genus
of carnivorous
ant
s found in the tropics
and subtropics
throughout the world.
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 larva
e.
s within the animal kingdom. One study of Odontomachus bauri
recorded peak speeds of between 126–230 km/h (78.3–142.9 ), with the jaws closing within just 130 microsecond
s on average. The peak force
exerted was in the order of 300 times the body weight of the ant. The ants were also observed to use their jaws as a catapult
to eject intruders or fling themselves backwards to escape a threat.
genus Enoplomischus
seems to mimic
this ant genus.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of carnivorous
Carnivore
A carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of animal tissue, whether through predation or scavenging...
ant
Ant
Ants are social insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from wasp-like ancestors in the mid-Cretaceous period between 110 and 130 million years ago and diversified after the rise of flowering plants. More than...
s found in the tropics
Tropics
The tropics is a region of the Earth surrounding the Equator. It is limited in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere at S; these latitudes correspond to the axial tilt of the Earth...
and subtropics
Subtropics
The subtropics are the geographical and climatical zone of the Earth immediately north and south of the tropical zone, which is bounded by the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, at latitudes 23.5°N and 23.5°S...
throughout the world.
Overview
Commonly known as trap-jaw ants, species in Odontomachus have a pair of large, straight mandiblesMandible (insect)
Insect mandibles are a pair of appendages near the insect’s mouth, and the most anterior of the three pairs of oral appendages . Their function is typically to grasp, crush, or cut the insect’s food, or to defend against predators or rivals...
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
Sensory receptor
In a sensory system, a sensory receptor is a sensory nerve ending that responds to a stimulus in the internal or external environment of an organism...
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 larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e.
Speed record
Trap-jaw ants of this genus have the fastest moving predatory appendageAppendage
In invertebrate biology, an appendage is an external body part, or natural prolongation, that protrudes from an organism's body . It is a general term that covers any of the homologous body parts that may extend from a body segment...
s within the animal kingdom. One study of Odontomachus bauri
Odontomachus bauri
Odontomachus bauri is a species of ponerinae antknown as trap jaw ants. The trap jaw consists of mandibles which contain a spring-loaded catch mechanism....
recorded peak speeds of between 126–230 km/h (78.3–142.9 ), with the jaws closing within just 130 microsecond
Microsecond
A microsecond is an SI unit of time equal to one millionth of a second. Its symbol is µs.A microsecond is equal to 1000 nanoseconds or 1/1000 millisecond...
s on average. The peak force
Force
In physics, a force is any influence that causes an object to undergo a change in speed, a change in direction, or a change in shape. In other words, a force is that which can cause an object with mass to change its velocity , i.e., to accelerate, or which can cause a flexible object to deform...
exerted was in the order of 300 times the body weight of the ant. The ants were also observed to use their jaws as a catapult
Catapult
A catapult is a device used to throw or hurl a projectile a great distance without the aid of explosive devices—particularly various types of ancient and medieval siege engines. Although the catapult has been used since ancient times, it has proven to be one of the most effective mechanisms during...
to eject intruders or fling themselves backwards to escape a threat.
Mimicry
The jumping spiderJumping spider
The jumping spider family contains more than 500 described genera and about 5,000 described species, making it the largest family of spiders with about 13% of all species. Jumping spiders have some of the best vision among invertebrates and use it in courtship, hunting and navigation...
genus Enoplomischus
Enoplomischus
Enoplomischus is a genus of the spider family Salticidae .This genus has a large spike-like process on its pedicel. This structure probably mimics a similar spike present in the anterior part of the abdomen of the Odontomachus ants that these spiders seem to be modeled after.-Species:*...
seems to mimic
Ant mimicry
Ant mimicry is mimicry of ants by other organisms. Ants are abundant all over the world, and insect predators that rely on vision to identify their prey such as birds and wasps normally avoid them, either because they are unpalatable, or aggressive. Thus some other arthropods mimic ants to escape...
this ant genus.
Distribution
Odontomachus species are found in Central to South America, tropical Asia, Australia, and Africa.Species
This species list is taken mostly from (Bolton 1995).- Odontomachus aciculatus F. SmithFrederick Smith (entomologist)Frederick Smith was a British entomologist.Smith worked in the zoology department of the British Museum from 1849, specialising in the Hymenoptera. In 1875 he was promoted to Assistant Keeper of Zoology...
, 1863 - Odontomachus affinis Guerin-MenevilleFélix Édouard Guérin-MénevilleFélix Édouard Guérin-Méneville was a French entomologist.Guérin-Méneville changed his surname from Guérin in 1836. He was the author of the illustrated work Iconographie du Règne Animal de G. Cuvier 1829–1844, a complement to the work of Georges Cuvier and Pierre André Latreille, which lacked...
, 1844 - Odontomachus allolabis Kempf, 1974
- Odontomachus angulatus Mayr, 1866
- Odontomachus animosus F. Smith, 1860
- Odontomachus assiniensis Emery, 1892
- Odontomachus banksi Forel, 1910
- Odontomachus bauriOdontomachus bauriOdontomachus bauri is a species of ponerinae antknown as trap jaw ants. The trap jaw consists of mandibles which contain a spring-loaded catch mechanism....
Emery, 1892 - Odontomachus biolleyi Forel, 1908
- Odontomachus biumbonatus Brown, 1976
- Odontomachus bradleyi Brown, 1976
- Odontomachus brunneusOdontomachus brunneusOdontomachus brunneus is a species of ant in the subfamily Ponerinae, found in the southeastern United States, parts of Central America, and the West Indies.-Overview:...
(Patton, 1894) - Odontomachus caelatus Brown, 1976
- Odontomachus cephalotes F. Smith, 1863 (Indonesia, Australia, etc)
- Odontomachus chelifer (Latreille, 1802)
- Odontomachus circulus M. Wang, 1993
- Odontomachus clarus Roger, 1861
- Odontomachus coquereli Roger, 1861
- Odontomachus cornutusOdontomachus cornutusOdontomachus cornutus is a species of ant in the Ponerinae family....
Stitz, 1933 - Odontomachus erythrocephalus Emery, 1890
- Odontomachus floresensis Brown, 1976 (Indonesia: Flores)
- Odontomachus fulgidus M. Wang, 1993
- Odontomachus granatus M. Wang, 1993
- Odontomachus haematodus (Linnaeus, 1758) (South America, introduced to Australia prior to 1876)
- Odontomachus hastatus (FabriciusJohan Christian FabriciusJohan Christian Fabricius was a Danish zoologist, specialising in "Insecta", which at that time included all arthropods: insects, arachnids, crustaceans and others...
, 1804) - Odontomachus imperator Emery, 1887
- Odontomachus infandus F. Smith, 1858
- Odontomachus insularis Guerin-Meneville, 1844
- Odontomachus laticeps Roger, 1861
- Odontomachus latidens Mayr, 1867
- Odontomachus latissimus Viehmeyer, 1914
- Odontomachus macrorhynchus (Bernstein, 1861)
- Odontomachus malignus F. Smith , 1859
- Odontomachus mayi Mann, 1912
- Odontomachus meinerti Forel, 1905
- Odontomachus montanus Stitz, 1925
- Odontomachus monticola Emery, 1892
- Odontomachus mormo Brown, 1976
- Odontomachus nigriceps F. Smith, 1860
- Odontomachus opaciventris Forel, 1899
- Odontomachus opaculus Viehmeyer, 1912
- Odontomachus panamensis Forel, 1899
- Odontomachus papuanus Emery, 1887
- Odontomachus peruanus Stitz, 1933
- Odontomachus pseudobauri De Andrade, 1994
- Odontomachus rixosus F. Smith, 1857
- Odontomachus ruficeps F. Smith, 1858 (Australia)
- Odontomachus rufithorax Emery, 1911
- Odontomachus ruginodis M.R. Smith, 1937
- Odontomachus saevissimus F. Smith, 1858
- Odontomachus scalptus Brown, 1978
- Odontomachus silvestrii W.M. WheelerWilliam Morton WheelerWilliam Morton Wheeler, Ph.D. was an American entomologist, myrmecologist and Harvard professor.-Early life:...
, 1927 - Odontomachus simillimus F. Smith, 1858 (Australia, FijiFijiFiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
, etc) - Odontomachus spinifer De Andrade, 1994
- Odontomachus spissus Kempf, 1962
- Odontomachus sumbensis Brown, 1976
- Odontomachus tensus M. Wang, 1993
- Odontomachus testaceus Emery, 1897
- Odontomachus troglodytes Santschi, 1914 (Africa, Madagascar, Inner Seychelles)
- Odontomachus turneri Forel, 1900 (Australia)
- Odontomachus tyrannicus F. Smith, 1859
- Odontomachus unispinosus (Fabricius, 1793)
- Odontomachus xizangensis M. Wang, 1993
- Odontomachus yucatecus Brown, 1976
External links
- Slow motion video of the ants in action
- Mississippi Entomology Museum: Pictures of worker and male O. haematodus
- Ant's super-fast bite is a built-in 'ejector seat'
- Ferocious ants bite like a bullet - BBC News, 21 August 2006. Elli Leadbeater. Retrieved 22 August 2006
- Man-trap jaws make ant fastest predator - Scotsman, 22 August 2006. John Von Radowitz. Retrieved 22 August 2006