Normally a new ant species is discovered while an entomologist is surveying a particular area of land for days on end. However, there may be a more effective way at finding different types of spiders, and of course, that would involve dissecting insect loving frogs in order to search their entrails for various insects. This idea seems even more legitimate since a new species of ant was discovered through the dissection method.
The new species of rare long toothed ant was discovered in the belly of the little devil poison frog in Ecuador. This specimen is the seventh known species belonging to a rare genus. So far nothing is known about this bugs feeding behavior, but its features are suggestive in that it possessive elongated jaws that seem well adapted to capturing predators. The scientists in charge of the study insist that there exist humane methods of finding out what the contents of a frog’s stomach are. For example, scientists plan on using a chemical that flushes all the contents from a frogs digestive tract without harm caused to the frog. It sure beats stomping around in the mud looking for new bugs.
Do you think that draining the contents of a frog’s stomach in order to find new species of insects and spiders is a feasible idea?
