Bugged
I can’t stop thinking about this story, which I found via the guys over at Bothersome Things.
At about 2 inches (5 cm) long, the specimen is a “monstrously big ant,” said Bruce Archibald, a paleoentomologist at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia who reported the discovery today (May 3) in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B. Though fossils of loose giant ant wings have been found before in the United States, this is the first known full-body specimen.
Two inches may not see all that huge, but consider the colonies they must have constructed – better yet, imagine a line of insects the size of your thumb marching through your picnic and making off with your sandwiches, or, given enough of them, maybe even your dog.
(Poor Leiningen wouldn’t stand a chance.)
I’m not sure if Fire Ants live as far North as Canada, but they’re common here in the Southeastern US. They’re tiny little critters and when they bite, it’s quite painful – especially if you’re unfortunate enough to step on one of their mounds. Imagine what a nip from one of these guys would feel like. Sometimes extinction is a good thing, I suppose.
Jeff
I’d love to see these things in some kid’s ant farm.
I’ve always heard of the dreaded Fire Ant, but I’ve never encountered one.
I saw a story just last week about the largest spider fossil ever found. It was a disappointing few inches. I thought insects were bigger in the prehistoric era?
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/04/big-spider-fossil/
On the other hand, there’s this:
http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/139768/20110429/55-feet-long-unknown-fish-species-found-in-china-photo.htm
Understood – is it wrong that I was disappointed to find out that Them! was simply not feasible given the physics involved? I guess at a certain point exoskeletons just aren’t feasible for large creatures.
Still, the idea of a pet ant the size of a breadbox is tempting. Given their relative strength, they’d be fantastic as a new type of pack animal.
Oops, meant to add that, despite the tiny size, it’s still a pretty neat looking fossil.