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Thursday, March 18, 2010

Photo: Ant With Lightning Jaws Makes World's Fastest Strike


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The trap-jaw ant snaps its jaws together at an astonishing 145 miles (233 kilometers) an hour, using the force of that motion not only to capture prey but also to catapult to safety, according to a new study. Scientists say the maneuver is the fastest self-powered strike in the animal kingdom.

Photograph courtesy Alex Wild/myrmecos.net/PNAS