Sticking an endoscope camera down an Australian bull ant nest

I recently bought a cheap endoscope camera from eBay that connects to a laptop for recording. Today, I used the camera and laptop to explore the inside of a bull ant nest. These ants belong to the Myrmecia genus and are also known as bulldog ants, inch ants and jumper ants. Sorry about the shakey video but it's really hard to hold these sort of cameras steady.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lu3k5dnAhCk&feature=youtu.be

As expected, these ants were super aggressive. At least 6 to 8 of them were clinging to the long lens tube as I was sticking it down various burrows in the nest. I was stung twice but not during recording. They weren't only attacking the camera. They were also crawling all over the laptop, the laptop bag and my backpack, biting and stinging. It took ages to get rid of them and it was during my attempts to remove them that I got stung. I was grabbing clumps of long grass and trying to brush them off.

This will definitely be the one and only time I stick an endoscope camera down a bull ant nest. Never again!

I was just going to click the "Thank for this post" button but considering the effort (and pain) that went into the creation of this video...well, THANKS! VERY COOL! Can you describe the pain level from a sting and your symptoms afterwards?

I'm trying to remember the pain level but I'm not sure if I can recall enough detail to put it on a scale. If it was really fresh in my memory right after the stings, I probably could. A few years ago, my father was stung by one of these ants and it sounded like it was extremely painful - a high level of pain. He applied some 'Stingose' to his finger right afterwards which seemed to alleviate the effects of the venom.

When I was stung the first time (shortly after recording had finished) it hurt but it wasn't a huge amount of pain, not as much as I expected. The second sting was worse - definitely more painful than the first. But not completely unbearable. I didn't seem to have any symptoms from it. And the pain didn't last that long. When I headed back to the house, I felt completely fine. However, a couple of hours later I felt a strange, uncomfortable feeling in the area of my finger where I was stung the second time. Then after that, it was normal again. When I woke up this morning, I felt a bit of itchiness in some of my fingers but I'm not sure if that was related to the sting or not.

Apparently, some people have had allergic reactions to the stings inflicted by these ants. And some of these instances have resulted in death.

Fascinating, thanks much!!

Methinks you have a hobby aptly suited for extreme masochists. Very fascinating video.

Speaking from a medical point a view, a hint how we use endoscopes. They all jiggle and wobble. That is inevitable. So the tech determines the approximate focal distance and moves the probe that much then freezes for a few seconds. Long enough to get a good clear image. Essentially taking a series of still photo shots. You have ants climbing all over you, we have freaked out patients climbing walls.

When coping with ants, carrying a bottle of ammonia. Soak a cotton ball and place it at the mouth of the ant nest. The odor essentially blinds them which may help you escape unscathed. Additionally, scrub ant bites immediately with a swab soaked in ammonia. It neutralizes the formic acid.

Thanks for the good words.

Yea, sooner or later I came across the realisation that it would probably be a good idea to move the tube lens in small movements and then stop for a little now and then. In addition to that, I wonder if I can prop something up that has a smooth surface for the lens tube to rest against and slide along. If it has a u-shape to support the shape of the tube then even better. I think this could certainly improve the steadiness of the footage. Although not practical on a bull ant nest!

Ah good tips on the ammonia. I wonder how readily available that stuff is.

dragonblade71 said:

Thanks for the good words.

Yea, sooner or later I came across the realisation that it would probably be a good idea to move the tube lens in small movements and then stop for a little now and then. In addition to that, I wonder if I can prop something up that has a smooth surface for the lens tube to rest against and slide along. If it has a u-shape to support the shape of the tube then even better. I think this could certainly improve the steadiness of the footage. Although not practical on a bull ant nest!

Ah good tips on the ammonia. I wonder how readily available that stuff is.

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Sounds like creative time working out a prop. Back 20 years ago I assisted an ENT doc getting a controllable scope that could be remotely bent to look around corners using a little joystick. It cost a meager $15,000. I found a used one for $7,000. That's just the probe.

Ammonia, NH3, is available anywhere household chemical products are sold. It is the active ingredient in glass and other slick surfaces cleaners as well as having several million uses in the commercial and industrial fields. You want aromatic to chase ants away. In a pinch you could use glass cleaner but that stuff is very weak and watered down. Ammnoia has a ph of 10.5. Base enough to neutralize formic acid without causing burns and a low enough viscosity to really get surfaces wet. Just keep the crap away from bleach.

At least they weren't bullet ants!

viper69 said:

At least they weren't bullet ants!

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Now those things are truly nasty!

Itching sometimes does follow pain.
Since these are caused by differing levels of nerve disturbance this should be no great surprise:
although it should be noted that itching (especially if things swell up after the pain seemed to be past)
may indicate enough allergic disturbance to make further contact with the triggering agent distinctly unsafe.

Louise E. Rothstein said:

Itching sometimes does follow pain.
Since these are caused by differing levels of nerve disturbance this should be no great surprise:
although it should be noted that itching (especially if things swell up after the pain seemed to be past)
may indicate enough allergic disturbance to make further contact with the triggering agent distinctly unsafe.

Click to expand...

Itching is a neurological reaction. Scratching the itch stimulates blood flow, (skin turns red where you scratch) accelerating the body's processes to get rid of toxins.