Mandible strike kinematics of the trap‐jaw ant genus Anochetus Mayr (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

High‐speed power‐amplification mechanisms are common throughout the animal kingdom. In ants, power‐amplified trap‐jaw mandibles have evolved independently at least four times, including once in the subfamily Ponerinae which contains the sister genera Odontomachus and Anochetus . In Odontomachus , mandible strikes have been relatively well described and can occur in <0.15 ms and reach speeds of over 60 m s −1 . In contrast, the kinematics of...