Myrmoteras binghamii

     This species has a very restricted distribution and is only recorded from Thailand and Myanmar. Even in their natural habitat, they are quite rare and not easy to find.
     They live in undisturbed evergreen forests where they forage alone on the surface of the ground amongst the leaf litter. Colonies are very small and even when mature only have about 20 - 30 workers.    
     The workers and queens are 3.5 - 4 mm in size and the queens are distinguishable by their slightly broader thorax. They construct their nests which consist of two or three small chambers, either inside or underneath old wood.
     They are a primitive predatory species with large eyes and highly specialized elongated mandibles, which have special sensory hairs on the inside. When the workers forage their mandibles are held open, and when the sensory hairs are touched, they automatically snap shut.
     They have rarely been observed in the wild so little is known about their natural food, but in captivity, they will take sweet substances, and very small freshly killed or live insects.
     They seem to take to artificial nests without any problems, but the chambers should be shallow and not more than 3 mm in depth.
 
     Summary: A rare species not often offered for sale. They do however respond well to captivity with the added advantage that they can be kept in small habitats and don’t need a lot of food.
     However: They are quite small, and as such observing them in detail and feeding them can be challenging.