Colobopsis saundersi

Colobopsis saundersi
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Subfamily: Formicinae
Genus: Colobopsis
Species:
C. saundersi
Binomial name
Colobopsis saundersi
(Emery, 1889)
Synonyms
  • Camponotus saundersi

Colobopsis saundersi (synonym Camponotus saundersi), also called the Malaysian exploding ant, is a species of ant found in Malaysia and Brunei, belonging to the genus Colobopsis. A worker can explode suicidally and aggressively as an ultimate act of defense, an ability it has in common with several other species in this genus and a few other insects. The ant has an enormously enlarged mandibular gland, many times the size of other ants, which produces adhesive secretions for defense. According to a 2018 study, this species forms a species complex and is probably related to C. explodens, which is part of the C. cylindrica group.

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