A bullet ant (Paraponera clavata) in the rainforest of Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve, Ecuador. Bullet ants are large, predatory ants named for their extremely potent sting. They have a stinger on the rear end of their abdomen with which they are capable of inflicting excruciating pain that can incapacitate larger animals such as humans. The bullet ant's venom primarily contains poneratoxin, a paralyzing neurotoxic peptide. Pain Level 4 is the highest level in the Schmidt sting pain index. Schmidt rated the sting of the bullet ant as a 4-plus. The pain of its sting is therefore literally off the charts. He describes the bullet ant’s sting as incapacitating — it maintains its intensity for at least 12 hours, and often twice that. “Pure, intense, brilliant pain. Like fire-walking over flaming charcoal with a 3-inch rusty nail in your heel.” © Carlos Vermeersch