Antlion Devouring an Ant Video

An ant falls prey to the doodlebug

An antlion is a curious critter that is also called a doodlebug. The name doodlebug comes from the tracks that they leave. Often, these are squiggly lines in dusty soil or sand. Each line eventually ends at an upside-down conically-shaped hole. At the base of each hole is buried the antlion. The antlion digs its hole by moving backward round and round, and digging deeper as it goes. These patient critters wait for an ant, or other small unsuspecting insect, to fall into the hole. The trapped critter's struggles to escape dislodge soil from the sides of the hole, alerting the antlion that there is prey in its trap. The antlion then uses its pincers to grab the prey and drag it under the soil, where it is consumed.

The antlion makes a new hole each night. If you go out in early evening, that's when you will find the freshest trails. The video shows what happens when an ant falls into the antlion's trap. Watch closely for the movement of the pincers as the antlion tries to grab the prey from below.

 

Go to the main page of Beartracker's Animal Tracks Den

Find tracking posters, greeting cards, t-shirts, hats, and more in my new store.

Now available: "Animals Don't Cover Their Tracks - An Introduction to Animal Tracking" on CD! (Version 3.0) New drawings, more species, more photos, more extensive sections on tracking humans, more detailed directions for plaster casting, mystery tracks section, tracking stories section, and more. The CD features over 100 species, including special bonus sections with the tracks of some African and Australian animals. A large section on tracking lost people for search and rescue is included, with over four pages of photos showing the details of tracks and signs people leave. Easy to use format. This web site is limited by bandwidth, but the CD-ROM is not. The CD is available in my online store at: www.dirt-time.com  Works with Mac or PC. Happy tracking!!

What else can you find in the nature store? Beartracker's animal tracks coloring book, T-shirts, sweatshirts, journals, book bags, toddler and infant apparel, mouse pads, posters, postcards, coffee mugs, travel mugs, clocks, Frisbees, bumper stickers, hats, stickers, and many more items. All with tracks or paw  prints, or nature scenes. Custom products are available. If you don't see the track you want on the product you want, email me and I can probably create it. Proceeds from all sales go to pay the monthly fees for this web site. You can help support this site as well as get great tracking products! Thank you!

 

Find other tracking products: www.zazzle.com/tracker8459*

 

Also visit these fine stores for more products of interest:

NDN Pride shop - For Indian Pride items for all tribes. Custom items available on request.

ASL Signs of Love - For anyone who uses or is learning ASL, American Sign Language. Custom name items and more are available here.

Sales from all stores give commissions to Beartracker's Animal Tracks Den, which helps keep this site online as a free service. We are celebrating ten years online this year!

 

 

 

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Got a tracking story? E-mail me and tell me about it.

tracker777@hotmail.com

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Copyright © 2009. Text, drawings, videos, and photos by Kim A. Cabrera

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Copyright © Kim A. Cabrera - Desert Moon Design

Page updated: Sunday, October 18, 2009.