Acanthomyrmex crassispinus

Found on the floor of primary forest in near-tropical areas, usually nesting in solid fallen logs. The back carries recurved spines, and the heads of the queen and the majors are thick and heavily built, hence the Chinese name "thick-backed spiny ant". Those massive heads are used to gather seeds: the powerful mandibles crush the seed, then saliva dissolves it before it is eaten. Newly emerged queens are born without wings and only the males are winged, so the species is thought to breed by males flying to other nests to mate. It gives off a distinctive formic-acid smell when alarmed, and mature colonies number only a few dozen individuals.