Heard of ants that can rip apart the flesh of small animals in minutes? Yupp, you did not hear me wrong. They are the almighty fire ants, typically a variety of stinging ants with over 280 species worldwide.
Wonder why they are called fire
ants? This is due to the painful sensation felt by humans when they are stung by a fire ant. It is analogous to what one feels when he or she has been burnt by fire. Thus, the name.These tiny predators are unlike the harmless-looking ants we notice everywhere; they bite to get a grip of their prey, spray acid on its wound, and finally sting (from the abdomen) to inject a toxic called Solenopsin, a compound from the class of piperidines. How nasty. They usually feed on young plants, seeds and crickets, but often attack small animals and kill them. They usually attack in a group, which escorts efficiency to a much higher level.
