March 2 (UPI) --How did the trap-jaw ant evolve such a complex mechanism for snatching its prey? Today, the mandibles of trap-jaw ants take many forms, suggesting a tremendous level of anatomical ...

video: The animation shows the changes in form as the trap-jaw mechanism becomes more divergent from the ancestral form. The jaws (yellow) develop small projections that can latch onto the labrum ...

The speedy mandibles of Strumigenys ants developed repeatedly throughout the world, explaining how evolution creates new abilities to help a species survive. Ants gather on a dewy peony bud. (Image ...

Scientists are beginning to solve a mystery involving three ants: A headhunter, a formidable biter, and a kidnapper. For 60 years, scientists have known that one species of small, rust-colored ant ...

Sometimes the best solution to a sticky situation is a quick escape, and few escapes are faster than a trap-jaw ant’s. Powerful jaws feature so prominently in science articles and documentaries that ...

Trap-jaw ants snap their mandibles shut with one of the fastest movements in the animal world. Using a spring-loaded mechanism, they can bring their jaws together at up to 60m/s. That's fast enough to ...

The ants' jaws reach speeds of 120 mph. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. Moving at speeds thousands of times faster than the blink ...

The trap-jaw ant, Odontomachus bauri, ready to strike. With peak velocities over 50 meters per second, their mandibles are among the fastest movements in the biological world. Trap-jaw ants also ...

When trap-jaw ants need to get out quick, they use their heads, not their legs to escape. This large species of Costa Rican ant smashes its jaw into the ground, causing the ant to catapult up and away ...

Dec. 12 (UPI) --The record for fastest appendage belongs to the dracula ant, Mystrium camilla, and its snap-jaw. Scientists clocked the speed of its mandibles at 200 miles per hours. The dracula ant's ...