Date: Tue, 7 Jul 1998 20:45:14 +0000
"Giles" <cnocbui@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>You realy should do a book Kerry.
>What are ponerine ants?
>Giles
>> From: Kerry Dressler <bio-photo@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>> overrated danger as compared with ponerine ants -
Well, sometimes the most common things turn out to be the most bothersome.
Ponerine ants look for all the world like regular ants.. on steroids. They
can be 1.5 inches long. Usually you will just see solitary ponerines in
leaf litter or on trees, and you can avoid them, but if you sit and don't
watch yourself, you can easily be got. They bite from the front and sting
from the back. ONE ant sting can effectively end your days work. Some
folks with a single sting on the leg can't walk for 24 hours. If you have
an allergy to the sting it can downright ruin your life. They hurt. I ran
into a fellow in a hospital in Columbia who had been climbing a tree (for a
plant, of course) and got into a NEST of them. He was over 40 feet in the
air, and didn't even hesitate to push off and fall to the ground. Hence
the broken legs and hospital. He only got 3 bites before he decided on
that action. I"ve only been bitten twice, but I hardly ever sit or lean on
anything when I'm in the field.
Kerry
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
Kerry Dressler Email: bio-photo@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Bio-Photo Services, Inc. http://www.bio-photo.com
21305 NW 86th Ave TEL: (352)466-4215
Micanopy, FL 32667 FAX: (352)466-3151
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