THE SAFARI ANTS

Safari ants are insects also known as Dolrylus or Driver Ants and is a large genus of the army ants primarily found in East and Central Africa although the range also extends to Southern Africa and tropical Asia. The term safari is Swahili Arabic word meaning journey or an expedition to observe or hunt. The indigenous people in East Africa from Regional Bantu languages use the word Siafu or Thuraku to describe various species of these ants.

The safari ants live in colonies of over 20 million ants. They are said to be completely blind and rely on secreted chemical hormone known as pheromones to communicate. Just like humans use coded messages to communicate different meanings, the safari ants use pheromones with different scents to communicate different meanings like the scent for availability of food, a scent raising an alarm for dangerous situation, a scent for sex and such like things.

The safari ants are militant in nature and are invasive. Just like we've said that the term safari means journey or an expedition to observe or hunt, the safari ants migrate in their colonies to hunt for food or change to new nest sites. It is during the immigration that they invade. They traverse through a wide range of terrain scaling on walls, trees and rocks. If the target is a house, just like the military they can take over the house in less than two hours attacking any living creature they come across. They stream into the house from below the door, cracks, windows or any open spaces.

If during immigration they encounter a water stream and in their own estimation they find out they can cross the stream or the river, the worker and soldier ants weave a raft by holding tight to each others legs and jaws. Once the bridge is ready the entire colony cross over the stream to the other side then bridge is dismantled.

When the safari ants are crossing the road they form paths in columns where soldier ants stand side by side with raised jaws allowing worker ants to pass underneath in a coordinated logistical manner.

In the event a safari ant is mortally wounded and chances of survival are very low, the wounded ant in an act of selflessness violently resist to be carried to safety so that workers and don't lose focus in the overall mission of the colony.

If the weather is not convenient for the safari ants to proceed with the immigration mission the ants quickly converge and form a temporary camp that is referred to as bivouac in military terms. The workers grip on each others legs to create a temporary nest covering the queen, the young ones and the vulnerable. The soldiers keep guard on top ready to act on any intruder. The following morning if the weather is favourable for them to proceed with their mission, the ants dismantle the camp and start the journey.

Anyone who have had an experience with the safari ants will narrate horror stories how they slept without the knowledge of invasion only to be awoken by nasty stings and bites. They will tell you how they saw lizards, centipedes, spiders or any living thing in the house fleeing and looking for an escape route after realizing the ants have invaded their territory. The driver ants no doubt have a fierce reputation such that the moment you realize their presence you definitely have to take precautions not come into contact with them. 

The safari ant is red or red black with a head, an abdomen and a thorax. The queen ant is the largest in the colony. The soldier safari ant has large head with mandibles (jaws) that look like crab pincers. The pincers are for biting and inflicting pain, when they bite they mean business and don't let go.

If by any chance you experience the driver ants stings or bites, swat the ants off your arm or leg and if the cling is tight use some little force to crash it off. The safari ants bites rarely cause severe physical reactions, usually redness swelling around the bite mark and an itchy sensation that may last a few hours or a day. However in cases where a child or an immune compromised person is stung assess the severity and seek medical attention.

The safari ants aggressiveness and sense of protection have earned them a reputation of a scary monster. The movie Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is shown ants attacking, killing and presumably consuming a fully grown man. In reality there is no record of ants killing a healthy adult. But there are records of driver ants attacking infants and immobile persons. As much as the experience of being invaded by safari ants is trembling and toe curling, it is important to swiftly get yourself out of their way. 

If they become a nuisance there are recommended solutions that act as repellants for the safari ants.