Ants.
» .., Ants are very wonderful little creatures. and the study of them ia an exceedingly interesting one. Ai a rule they are very pugnacious, and make vicious attacks on their enemies. There is one species in Asiatic Turkey whose bite is very eevere, and it hangs on so tenaciously that it allows its body to be pulled away from its head without releasing its hold. The Turk*, who practise surgery in this part of the world, have turned this bad habit of the ant to good account, and employ the living inseot as a means of stitching together flesh wounds. The raannei' in which the ant is made to act the part of a surgical stitch is a very remarkable one. With its mandibles (which are very strong) wide open, it is held in a pair of forceps and placed against the cut, the two lips of which are pressed tightly together between the fingers. As booh as the flesh is touched, the ant brings its jaws together, and pierces the skin on both sides of the wound. When it has once bitten it holds on so firmly that the surgeon breaks off its body and leaves the head fixed on and holding together the cat. In the case of a large wound, as many as a dozen ants are used, and the heads are left in position until the wound heals.
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/MH18970112.2.17
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Manawatu Herald, 12 January 1897, Page 3
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232Ants. Manawatu Herald, 12 January 1897, Page 3
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