turtle ant

turtle ant (plural turtle ants)

1. Any of the tree-dwelling ants of the tribe Cephalotini (genera Cephalotes and Procryptocerus).
   • 2010, Mark W. Moffett, Adventures among Ants: A Global Safari with a Cast of Trillions, University of California Press, page 137:

     The species he concentrated on was Cephalotes atratus, a slate-black “turtle ant” with a flattened body. High-speed videos proved that when dislodged from a tree, a turtle ant stretches out her body and limbs and aligns herself with respect to the ground so that she doesn't turn head over heels.

   • 2016, Mark E. Lasbury, The Realization of Star Trek Technologies, Springer, page 38:

     The crab spider of South America feeds mostly on turtle ants.

   • 2017, Amina Khan, Adapt: How Humans Are Tapping into Nature's Secrets to Design and Build a Better Future, St. Martin's Press, page 213:

     That's very much the case for the arboreal turtle ants in the tropical forests of Mexico, another species Gordon visits during her summers off from teaching.