New paper on termite liquid lasso

Viscoelastic Liquid Lassos Extend the Defensive Reach of Termite Soldiers

Elio J. Challita, Daniel C. Ames, Jacob S. Harrison, Christina McDonald, Pankaj Rohilla, Prateek Sehgal, David A. Nickle, Jochen Mueller, Saad Bhamla. bioRxiv (2026)

We showed that Nasutitermes termite soldiers swing their heads at 5–30 Hz to coil a shear-thinning secretion into a “liquid lasso” reaching up to three body lengths, which then cures into a sticky tether that coats and immobilizes attacking ants. Download the paper