The Photo for the Week prompt: Abundant
The Ragtag Daily Prompt Monday: Rouse
When I first set foot on my bush property one thing I found was an abundance of Jumping Ants (Myrmecia pilosula) They have nests in the ground but also forage in trees. Yes they can jump 10cm or more. So it is not best to rouse Jumping Ants. As you can see, they are quite quick to emerge from the nest and attack.
You may wonder why, they are just ants. These Jumping Ants also have a very good pair of mandibles which can grip on quite hard and also have a sting.
Yes, a sting!!! It is like having red hot needles inserted into you skin and a painful sting which can last for quite a few hours afterwards. Jumping Ants can be found almost every where in Australia but aren’t all that common in urban areas..
Related, unsurprisingly, to the Bullant who also have the ability to give you a nasty bite but their bite doesn’t last as long and only gives you a welt or two,
Yes, Jumping Ants are in abundance still as they live in the bush or forest where I also live. Their nests can be up to 50cm high and up to 60cm in diameter. These nests are very solar energy efficient. The Jumping Ants also lie to decorate the outside of the nest with seeds, coloured gravel, charcoal, sticks and even the small invertebrates corpses they have slain.
They have excellent eye sight and I have seen them on leaves about to jump when I have been around a meter away. Jumping Ants will continue to advance until you are far away from their nest, probably about one kilometer lol
It was the sheer number of Jumping Ants I encountered when I was clearing the land, fencing and building sheds and houses that gave rise to naming of my property.
Durranbah is the indigenous name for Jumping Ants
