When an ant bites, it releases a type of acid correct?

Question

Also, is this "acid" always there or is it turned off and on? And, when does the ant know when to stop biting when it's prey is dead.

Answer 1

There is two misconceptions in the statements above mine. Not all ants release chemicals (ei. formic acid) for defense, and of those that do release them, a large majority use other chemicals.



The ants that release this chemical are members of the Formicinae subfamily. They do control the amount of acid released as it is expensive to make (in terms of energy), and they bite their victim and spray small dosis of this acid to kill them. Once dead or semi-dead, they break them apart using their mandibles (biting them).



Their chemical mechanism of commands is too complex, scientist have only discovered a few of these chemicals, yet do not know their uses. So, no one knows exactly how their stop/activation mechanism of certain functions act.



Hope this helps

Answer 2

The ant will release FORMIC acid when it feels threatened, or when it is subduing prey (i.e a Ground Beetle)

The ant can control the the output of the toxin.

Answer 3

This is correct.

Formic or methanoic acid, both different names for the same thing, it is a common organic acid.