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Giant ant with head of other ant locked on leg

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Field Notes

Description:

Giant ant with head (only) of other ant jaw-locked to its leg

Habitat:

Lake environment

Species ID Suggestions

Comments (5)

Thanks a lot for your comment. So it is quite a common thing eh? I didn't know... This giant 'guardian'(?) ant was being helped by his smaller comrades to unlock the jam-locked head, but to no avail... I have a video of it. Insects in general can be very violent indeed! Cheers
Thanks a lot for your comment. So it is quite a common thing eh? I didn't know... This giant 'guardian'(?) ant was being helped by his smaller comrades to unlock the jam-locked head, but to no avail... I have a video of it. Insects in general can be very violent indeed! Cheers
I can't help you with an ID, but I've photographed a number of ants sporting ant heads on their legs or antennae. This happens frequently during battles between competing colonies. In the one instance I saw it happen, two ants from rival colonies were locked in combat. A third ant approached and stroked the combatants with its antennae, presumably to determine friend and enemy. Then it proceeded to chew off the head of the enemy ant, leaving it still locked onto the leg of the sister ant. Warfare among ants is a violent and vicious enterprise, fascinating to watch, but numbing in in the level of its violence.
Photographed
PublishedApril 28, 2011

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