Fascinating facts: Matabele ants

Matabele or hissing ants are the main predators of termites. They get their name from the Matabele tribe who are an offshoot of the Zulus. Much like the Matabele people of old, the Matabele ants attack in raiding parties and then carry off the spoils of the subdued tribe. In the video we can see an army of matabele ants raiding a termite colony. If you watch closely, the seemingly chaotic frenzy is actually a well planned and expertly carried out attack!

What usually happens is that a single scout will locate a potential food source and then lay a pheromone trail which the raiding party, often marching 2 to 10 abreast in a column that can extend in excess of 2 meter long, follows.  When the attack takes place it appears that some of the Matabele ants rush in and drag out the larva of the termites, or the termites themselves, while others sting them (which paralyzes them) and then carry them off to their own colonies as food. Incredible!

Blogger: Vaughn du Plooy

Ground beetles and bushveld lizzards

Beetles are one of the most successful orders on the planet thanks to a holometabolic (complete metamorphosis) lifecycle.  This means that the larva is completely different to the adult in both diet and habitat.  In order to reach adulthood, the larva must undergo pupation before emerging as a beetle (the same mechanism as butterflies and moths).  This theoretically enables them to double the number of individuals in a given area since the problem of competition for space and food is non-existent.  They have also evolved a plethora of anti-predation behaviour essential for survival!

Ground beetles display contrasting colours on their carapace to warn potential predators of their defence mechanisms.  This phenomenon is called aposematic colouration and is essential when their main predator, birds, rely on superb colour vision to hunt.  They are able to squirt a noxious substance at their attackers and are known to be very accurate giving rise to the Afrikaans name ‘oogpisters’ or ‘eye-pissers’!  In some species, the chemicals involved can even burn human flesh. 

Interestingly, there is a reptile found in Southern Africa known called the bushveld lizard that mimics the two-spotted ground beetle shown here.  The juvenile lizards show similar bright markings and even walk with a hunched, slow posture to try and dupe their avian predators.  It is one of the very few examples in nature where an arthropod is mimicked by another class of animals.

Blog written by Ben Coley

Photo courtesy of www.sareptiles.co.za