Ferocious ant

Harpegnathos venator

Not a good week for spiders then! First a blip of a digger wasp taking out a jumping spider, and today, a lynx spider, a formidable hunter in its own right, gets brought down by what must be the most fearful ant that I have ever seen.

I only got one decent image out of the twenty that I took, but that is all it takes. The constant motion of the ant made photography a chore, as I had to shuffle about in the wet mud with a full belly wriggle.

I did actually get the whole scene in the full frame image, but elected to go for an extreme crop in order to show you graphically this awesome creature. Just look at the length of those mandibles in action, the arachnid had no chance against such armory.

But, the most surprising part for me, the ants eyes, they are HUGE! Ants are not known for having good eyesight, relying on chemical trails and interaction with other ants for navigation. This ant clearly hunts by sight and probably ambushed the poor, defenseless spider.

Research - I was correct in my observations and assumptions. The ant hunts by eyesight and by ambush. The ant is capable of jumping many times its own length (5/8" long) and in fact this is how it attacks its prey. It springs forward and impales the prey on its spear like mandibles. Barbs prevent the prey from escape.

Once impaled, the tip of the abdomen curls under and a sting injects the prey with poison, so powerful that the prey is paralyzed in literally just a few seconds. The immobilized prey is then dragged back to the hole in the ground that houses the nest.

What a fascinating creature, this has to be one of my best finds yet. Don't you just love Indonesia!

Dave