autothysis

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English

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Etymology

From the Ancient Greek roots αὐτός (autós, “self”) and θυσία (thusía, “sacrifice”); proposed by Maschwitz and Maschwitz in 1974 to describe the defensive mechanism of the carpenter ant Camponotus saundersi.

Noun

autothysis (uncountable)

  1. (biology) A process by which an animal destroys itself via internal rupture or explosion of an organ.
    • 2018 April 29, Killian Fox, The Observer‎:
      Another example of autothysis, or defensive suicidal rupturing, can be found in Neocapritermes taracua.
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