New spider species discovered in Australia uses ballista-like trap to fling ants with extreme force
By
James Woodford
Summary
A newly discovered spider species in Queensland, Australia, builds a unique snare trap that flings green tree ants into its web with extreme force. Researchers measured accelerations of up to 1,367 m/s² (130 times gravity), requiring high-speed cameras at 5,000-7,000 fps to capture the action. The trap is reminiscent of a Roman-era ballista weapon and is designed to catch a single species of ant, launching prey 30 centimeters into the air.
Source
Twitter / XNew spider species discovered in Australia uses ballista-like trap to fling ants with extreme forcenewscientist.comKey quotes
· 2 pulledTo capture the moment, we had to push the cameras to 5000 to 7000 frames per second, which I honestly have never had to do… when I've been filming animals
Researchers have measured accelerations of up to 1367 metres per second squared when green tree ants trigger the web snare trap, equating to 130 times the force of gravity
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