Bad team players? The disappearance of ancient Hell Ants

The now-extinct ‘Hell Ant’ species had the same six legs and segmented body that we’d recognise in an ant today, but they also had a huge, scythe-like jaw and a horn coming out of their heads.

This bizarre predator is gone now, but you’d think, with such combative features, they would have been better at survival. So… why did they disappear?

Part of the reason for their evolutionary phase-out might lie in their unusual mouthparts, which made them less adaptable as environmental conditions shifted. The other might have been the rise of teamwork, something displayed in today’s ants, which live in colonies and have ‘castes’, enabling a distinct division of labour.

View the original video here.

Good Living is the Cyprus Mail’s portal of curated content from across the internet, showcasing local and global ideas, cultural highlights, and scientific and technological developments to inspire a sustainable life.