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#1
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09-10-2011, 11:59 AM
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Scarlet Ant and Velvet Ant Male vs Female: Mutillidae Wasps
Velvet ants are wasps in the family Mutillidae. Adult females are wingless and can sting, while males have wings and do not sting. Their dense hair and bright warning colors can make the females resemble large red, orange or black ants. The footage shows a red velvet ant grappling with a stick or pen tip on a white surface before being released. Additional photographs show red-and-black wingless females and two orange-and-black banded individuals that may belong to another species. Velvet ants defend themselves with a hard exoskeleton, warning coloration, squeaking sounds and a painful sting. Some are commonly called cow killers, but the nickname is a folk exaggeration. Their venom has low toxicity, and there is no evidence that the sting can kill a cow. Velvet ants develop as parasitoids of other ground-nesting wasps and bees, including cicada killers and bumble bees. |
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#6
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09-10-2011, 10:49 PM
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Re: Scarlet Ant and Velvet Ant Male vs Female: Mutillidae Wasps
we have them down here in east texas, i hear its sting is BAD, but not dangerous, beautiful creatures. they are very resilient little things too, i may have stepped on one and got stung as a kid, but was never sure if it was one or not, i had seen one at my feet near that time and could find nothing else in the grass, very painful sting last week i had to explain what they were to some coworkers who found one out in the back of the store, i explained the cow part and they were TERRIFIED of the thing, saying ' i'm going to kill it if it gets anywhere near me", i was trying to pick it up and it didn't do anything, it became scared and ran away from me. i only wish that sissy worked late last night, i was going to throw a snake i caught on him |