California Academy of Sciences - General Information
The trap-jaw ant is getting a lot of attention right now for having the fastest self-powered strike of any known animal. The ant, which lives in Costa Rica, can shut its mandibles at 145 MPH, beating out the vicious kick of the mantis shrimp.

How does one go about determining that a creature as tiny as an ant can move a body part 50% faster than Nolan Ryan can throw a fastball? They used a camera that recorded at 50,000 frames per second.

In addition to attacking its prey with lightning mandibles, trap-jaw ants can also hurl themselves into the air with the force of the snap to evade predators and the like.

The videos, at the bottom of the linked page, are not to be missed.
- posted by frank crist @ 3:52 PM