The common ant lion is an amazing creature, the existence of which has been written in many books and scientific papers. Judge for yourself which of the insects a larva manages to lead a more active and eventful life than an adult? Thanks to their inventive larva, these insects got such an unusual name. Want to know more? Then read this article.
What does an ant lion look like?
Insects from the family of ant lions belong to the order of the retina. These are rather large graceful creatures with a long (2-7.5 centimeters) body and two pairs of mesh transparent wings, the span of which reaches 55-80 mm. Despite some similarities, ant lions are easily distinguished from dragonflies by their long antennae and slow zigzag style of flight. In addition, these insects can, like butterflies, fold their wings on their backs. Males differ from females in larger size, width of wings and some other signs. The head of this family is upright. The club-shaped antennae of the insect slightly thicken towards the end or end with the head. The ant lion's larva resembles a tick. It is wingless, has a drop-shaped form and is endowed with large sickle-shaped and serrated jaws, which give out a ruthless predator in it. The head of the larva is flat, the antennae on it are not visible.
Where does the ant lion live?
Approximately 2,500 species have a family of ant lions. Most of them prefer heat, therefore it is found mainly in the regions with a tropical and subtropical climate. In the post-Soviet space, these insects can be found in the Crimea, the Caucasus and Central Asia.
In Russia, ant lions are found in the Leningrad Region. Most often, they are found on the shores of the Gulf of Finland and Lake Ladoga, and also live in St. Petersburg. These insects prefer to live next to representatives of close species, in open sandy areas with a warm climate. Ant lions also live in the steppe zones in southern Russia.
Why is an ant lion so called?
From the description of the appearance of the retina, it is difficult to understand why they got such a strange name. Indeed, where does the “lion,” the more “ant”? It turns out that the representatives of this family owe their name to the habits of their larvae. If adult ant lions are elegant and harmless creatures, then their formidable larvae are an example of treachery and predatory tendencies. The whole lifestyle of ant lions in the first two or three years of existence is aimed at growth and development, so the larvae of these creatures arrange a merciless hunt for other small insects, lure them into a trap and drink their life juices. Since the prey of the larvae is most often ants, which, once caught in a trap, can no longer get out of the powerful stings of voracious predators, the retina has been called the “ant lion”.
Lion Hunting for Ants
On roadsides or sandy beaches you can see craters with a diameter of 5-15 centimeters. This depression is a house and a hunting pit of an ant lion. The larvae of these creatures choose their home away from rain and wind, in sunny and dry places, so that the sandy edges of the funnel easily showered under the weight of other insects. Predators dig their dwellings with the help of vigorous contractions of the end of the abdomen, and the grains of sand falling from above are dropped by sharp swings of the head. Interestingly, the size of the funnel to be dug depends on the appetite of the larva. Having finished their work, these unique creatures burrow deeper into the sand so that only their powerful jaws stick out. As soon as a running ant begins to slide into a prepared pit, the larva leaves its shelter. If the victim tries to get out, the ant lion begins to throw sand at it until the insect is at the bottom of the prepared trap. Then the larva sticks its huge jaws into it. Other insects, sometimes significantly exceeding its size, may turn out to be the prey of an ant lion. But the sharp jaws of the larva dig into the victim tightly, and the bristles directed forward on the body of the predator, like an anchor, cling to the ground. A victim caught in a deadly trap is doomed to become the food of a dexterous hunter.
Digestion of food
Why is it that the insect caught at the bottom of the pit does not resist for a long time? It turns out that the jaw of the larva is equipped with special grooves that contain toxic digestive juice. Sprung into the body of the victim, he first paralyzes it, and then begins to digest its insides. The tissues of the killed insect gradually become liquid, and the ant lion's larva simply drinks them, throwing out the useless chitinous shell. This digestion process is called external. Surprisingly, the larva does not secrete excrement, its posterior and middle intestines do not communicate with each other. Only adult insects are able to remove from the intestines the food decay products that have accumulated there over the previous years of existence.
Making a cocoon
Ant lion - an insect that from a larva eventually turns into a winged creature resembling a dragonfly. This process takes a lot of time. During the period of its existence, the ant lion larva manages to overwinter twice. To do this, she digs deep into the sand and falls asleep.
In the third year, the larva turns into a chrysalis. To do this, she fastens individual grains of sand with thin silky threads, surrounding herself with a dense cradle. Interestingly, the process of creating a cocoon in these insects differs from the creation of a similar structure in other creatures. If butterfly caterpillars and sawfly larvae use spinning glands to create a spider web, then the threads created by the predatory larva of an ant lion are the result of secretions of malpighian vessels located in the posterior intestine of the insect.
Adult life
The second half of summer is the time when the ant lion, large and clumsy, finally gets out of the cocoon. During the day, he sits motionlessly in the thickets of foliage, and at night and in the evening he slowly flies among the grass and trees. What does an ant lion eat in adulthood? Adults of this family live only a few weeks and eat almost nothing. They exist due to substances accumulated by the larva. Pollen sometimes becomes the snack of an adult ant lion, but the main purpose of these creatures is reproduction. Females of this family lay their eggs in dry sand. After some time, new predatory larvae appear from them.
Security
Ant lions need protection. According to the studies and observations of the scientist V.A. Krivokhatsky, no one has managed to bring out these unusual creatures in artificially created conditions. And the spread of ant lions in nature is hindered by the activity of a person who actively masters the places of their natural habitat. People are increasingly adapting sand dunes and beaches for their own housing and recreation. In forests growing on sandy soils, fires occur that destroy members of the ant lion family. The creation of fire strips in pine forests growing in the sand and limitation of human activity in regions suitable for the existence of ant lions are the main conditions for the preservation of this unique species of insects. Ant lion is included in the regional Red Books of Karelia, Tatarstan and the Tver region.
Ant lions in culture
In the southern United States, there is a belief that the ant lion's larva can be lured from a hole with a special spell. The same legends were recorded among the peoples of Australia, China, Africa and the Caribbean.
The early Christian didactic book "Physiologist" contains a description of the mythological ant lion. The concept of Christian morality is published in the work in accordance with the properties of legendary animals. The ant lion is described in it as a hybrid of two incompatible creatures - a lion and an ant. This mythological creature is doomed to starvation due to its hybrid physiology: it cannot eat plants like an ant and devour meat like a carnivorous lion.
In Japanese kusudama art, the “ant lion” is an elegant ball-shaped paper product. This craft got its name, probably due to the poetic sound of incongruous words. The art of kusudama resembles origami, but differs significantly from it in the way of creating paper models.
Ant lion at home
You can keep an ant lion at home. To do this, pour a layer of sand about 5 cm high in an open container. One insect needs a separate recess of 8-10 cm in diameter. Ant lions can be fed with ants, crickets and Drosophila flies. To prevent live feed from escaping, it is better to lubricate the walls of the container with Vaseline. After the larva turns into a chrysalis, it is better to cover the container with a thin net so that the ant lion does not fly away, and stick a stick in the sand so that the insect sits on it until the wings are completely straightened. The day after leaving the cocoon, the ant lion should be released from the container, otherwise it will die. Watching the habits of this animal will be interesting and informative not only for children, but also for adults.