Trap-Jaw Ants. Several different groups of ants have independently evolved a novel trap mechanism for catching prey. Trap-jaw ants lock their mandibles open and store impressive amounts of energy in the muscles of the head. When sensitive hairs in the trap are triggered, the mandibles close in a powerful and audible snap. The trap is so forceful in some species that the insects can launch themselves through the air by snapping their mandibles on the ground.
Odontomachus clarus, a desert trap-jaw ant, shows off the trigger hairs of her open trap. Chiricahua Mountains, Arizona, USA.
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Odontomachus clarus, a desert trap-jaw ant, shows off the trigger hairs of her open trap. Chiricahua Mountains, Arizona, USA.
filename: clarus4
filename: clarus4
Original size: 3000px x 1968px |
Current: 400px x 263px |
all images and text © Alex Wild 2008
insect pictures, insect images, insect photos, insect photography, ant images, bug pictures, bug photographs, insect identification, ant pictures
