Paraponera clavata
Paraponera clavata | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Hymenoptera |
Family: | Formicidae |
Genus: | Paraponera |
Species: | P. clavata
|
Binomial name | |
Paraponera clavata | |
Synonyms | |
Paraponera aculeata (Olivier, 1792) |
Paraponera clavata, commonly known as the bullet ant, is a
.Etymology
The
Taxonomy
Paraponera clavata was first
Under the present classification, the bullet ant is a member of the genus Paraponera in the tribe Paraponerini, subfamily Paraponerinae. It is a member of the family
P. clavata is the only living species in its subfamily. Although P. dieteri was the first extinct relative of P. clavata to be described, another Paraponera fossil had been examined earlier in the 1980s. The fossil, which was from the Miocene, was found embedded in Dominican amber from Hispaniola; at the time of discovery, the ant was the largest fossil of its kind. It showed similar characteristics to P. clavata, although it was considerably smaller. The fossil also has biogeographic importance. As P. clavata is not found in the Greater Antilles, but rather in Central and South America, this suggests that moister tropical forests covered the island during the Tertiary period. This is further supported by the fact that P. clavata is a forest ant that forages on the ground and up into bushes and trees.[22]
Description
Worker ants are 18–30 mm (0.7–1.2 in) long
Distribution
Paraponera is distributed throughout Central and South America, commonly found in the wet Neotropical realm. These ants are found in Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama from the north, and in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil from the south.[26] Colonies are found in lowland areas, at elevations ranging from sea level to 750 metres (2,461 ft). However, specimens have been collected at elevations of 1,500 metres (4,921 ft) in La Amistad International Park.[27]
Habitat
Colonies consist of several hundred individuals and are usually situated at the bases of trees. Workers
Enemies
The ant is a predator of Greta oto, the glasswing butterfly. This butterfly attempts to combat P. clavata by producing chemical extracts during the larval stage that are unpalatable to these ants.
Parasites
The small (1.5- to 2.0-mm-long)
Relationship with humans
Sting
The bullet ant's sting currently ranks the highest of all insect stings on Justin O. Schmidt's informal sting pain index, at 4.0+. According to Schmidt, the pain is like "[w]alking over flaming charcoal with a three-inch nail embedded in your heel".[30][31] Some victims compared the pain to that of being shot, hence the name of the insect. It is described as causing "waves of burning, throbbing, all-consuming pain that continues unabated for up to 24 hours".[4] Lymphadenopathy, edema, tachycardia, and fresh blood appearing in human victim feces are common symptoms from even a single sting.[25] Poneratoxin, a paralyzing neurotoxic peptide isolated from the venom, affects voltage-dependent sodium ion channels and blocks the synaptic transmission in the central nervous system. It is being investigated for possible medical applications.[10][32]
Initiation rites
The
See also
- Myrmecia, often called bull ants or bulldog ants, also renowned for their powerful sting
- Asian bullet ant
- Fire ants
- List of ant genera (alphabetical)
References
- ^ Fabricius, J.C. (1775). Systema entomologiae, sistens insectorum classes, ordines, genera, species, adiectis synonymis, locis, descriptionibus, observationibus. Flensbvrgi et Lipsiae [= Flensburg & Leipzig]: Kortii. pp. [32] + 832. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
- ^ "Clavata". Biology Online Dictionary. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
- ASIN B0006AUS92.
- ^ a b "The Word: Sting pain index". New Scientist. 15 August 2007.
- ISBN 978-1-4020-6242-1.
- ^ .
- ISBN 978-1-4214-1928-2.
- ISBN 978-0-292-77943-3.
- ^ Gough, Z. (13 March 2015). "The World's Most Painful Insect Sting". BBC Earth. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
- ^ ISSN 1424-4721.
- ISBN 978-0-520-07849-9.
- ^ Fabricius, J.C. (1775). Systema Entomologiae, Sistens Insectorum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, Adiectis Synonymis, Locis, Descriptionibus, Observationibus. Flensburgi et Lipsiae: Libraria Kortii. p. 395.
- ^ Latreille, P.A. (1804). "Tableau méthodique des insectes. Classe huitième. Insectes, Insecta" (PDF). Nouveau Dictionnaire d'Histoire Naturelle. 24: 129–200.
- ^ Smith, F. (1858). Catalogue of hymenopterous insects in the collection of the British Museum part VI. Formicidae (PDF). London: British Museum. p. 100.
- .
- ^ Emery, C. (1911). "Hymenoptera. Fam. Formicidae. Subfam. Ponerinae" (PDF). Genera Insectorum. 118: 1–125.
- .
- .
- .
- ^ Bolton, B. (2003). "Synopsis and classification of Formicidae" (PDF). Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute. 71: 1–370.
- ^ Bolton, B. (2016). "Paraponera clavata". AntCat. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
- ^ Wilson, E.O. (1985). "Ants of the Dominican amber (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) 4. A giant ponerine in the genus Paraponera" (PDF). Israel Journal of Entomology. 19: 197–200.
- ^ JSTOR 2388304.
- ^ Morgan, Randy C. "Giant Tropical Bullet Ant, Paraponera clavata, Natural History and Captive Management". Sonoran Arthropod Studies Institute. Archived from the original on March 23, 2009. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
- ^ PMID 16138209.
- ^ AntWeb. "Species: Paraponera clavata (Fabricius, 1775)". The California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
- PMID 20334591.
- S2CID 56109312.
- ^ Shellee Morehead; Jon Seger; Don Feener; Brian Brown. "A cryptic species complex in the ant parasitoid Apocephalus paraponerae (Diptera: Phoridae)". Archived from the original on 2010-04-07.
- ^ "Schmidt pain scale". Natural History Museum, London. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
- ^ Gough, Zoe (2015-03-12). "The world's most painful insect sting". BBC. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
- PMID 15153103.
- ^ Backshall, Steve (6 January 2008). "Bitten by the Amazon". The Sunday Times. London. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
- ^ "Initiation With Ants". National Geographic. Retrieved 13 February 2014. Video of initiation rite by National Geographic, showing preparation of glove and its use.
Further reading
- Bequaert, J.C. (1926). Medical Report of the Hamilton Rice 7th. Expedition to the Amazon. Harvard University Press. pp. 250–253.
- Weber, N. A. (1939). "The sting of the ant, Paraponera clavata". Science. 89 (2302): 127–128. S2CID 40705230.
- Lattke, JE (2003). Subfamilia Ponerinae, Introducción a las Hormigas de la Région Neotropical. Von Humboldt Institute, Bogotá, Colombia.
- Breed, M. D.; Bennett, B. (1985). "Mass recruitment to nectar sources in Paraponera clavata: A field study". Insectes Sociaux. 32 (2): 198. S2CID 8111724.
- Jandt, Jennifer; Larson, Hannah; Tellez, Peter; McGlynn, Terrence (December 2013). "To drink or grasp? How bullet ants (Paraponera clavata) differentiate between sugars and proteins in liquids". Naturwissenschaften. 100 (12): 1109–14. S2CID 18198729.
External links
- Brief article about Paraponera clavata Archived 2016-02-01 at the Wayback Machine
- Short article on the bullet ant and poneratoxin
- Giant tropical bullet ant, Paraponera clavata, natural history and captive management, article with images
- YouTube video of initiation ritual
- Paraponera clavata at AntWeb
- Data for specimens collected in Gracias a Dios Department, Honduras, the northernmost extent of its range.
- Peterson STUNG by a BULLET ANT! on YouTube