last updated 26.Mar.2006

Myrmecia ants are a conspicuous element of the Australian insect fauna, and with the exception of a rare New Caledonian species they are found nowhere else.  These large, elegant ants are regarded as having many primitive characteristics, including a relatively simple social structure, little morphological difference between queens and workers, and a basic foraging strategy where ants hunt for food individually using primarily visual cues.  Bull ants and jack jumpers are well known by Australians for the aggressive defense of their nests and their painful stings.