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Ant catches hoverfly
Myrmecia pilosula
-37.9507, 145.253
Field Notes
Description:
These ants are one of the most fearless and aggressive known in Australia but I have never seen them do this before. One suddenly jumped from a flower and latched onto the head of a very quick, common hoverfly. As they landed on another branch another ant grabbed a leg and, while the fly was still struggling furiously they dragged it right down to the ant nest. These ants have a very nasty sting which can last for days, they are afraid of nothing and they can jump huge distances. About 15mm long.
Habitat:
On ti-tree shrubs in a local national park.
Notes:
family: FORMICIDAE <br>
subfamily: Myrmeciinae <br>
https://sites.google.com/site/insectsoftasmaniahymenoptera2/suborder-ap…
<br> http://bie.ala.org.au/species/urn:lsid:biodiversity.org.au:afd.taxon:35… <br> The hoverfly is Ischiodon scutellaris.
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