(slow instrumental music) - We have caught a bullet ant, and we have it in
the glass capsule, and right now Mark is filming
the final macro shots. And I am two, yes,
two minutes away from being stung by the
insect that supposedly has the most painful sting
in the insect kingdom. I think I'm gonna be fine, but ooo, guys, the heart
rate is goin' today. This is it. (bold instrumental music) One...
(heavy breathing) Two... (heavy breathing)
Three. (grunting)
Ahhh! Ooo! It's stuck in my arm! It's stuck in my arm! Ahhh! (upbeat world music) (slow world music) Hidden within the darkness
of the Costa Rican rainforest a legend exists beneath
the ancient canopy. Indigenous people
refer to it as bala, which means bullet. It is rumored that just a
single sting from this animal is so excruciating that it feels as if one has been
shot with a gun. They say this creature is
not only to be avoided, but feared by all
who hear it's name. Bala. (whispers) Bala. Over the course of the past year I have taken on the
challenge of being stung by some of the planets
most notorious insects. It all began with
harvester ants. A common species in the
southwestern United States, that hails as having
the most toxic insect venom in the world. I took around 60 stings, and walked away
mostly unscathed. They're all over my
hands now, look at that! Ahh! (grunting) Ahh, there's one on my neck! Next, I buried my hands
into a nest of fire ants. The pain was like
sticking your hands into a burning ring of fire. Ahh! Ow, ow, ow! The after math? One of my biggest regrets, as my hands were
swollen for a month, and permanently scarred
even till this day. One would think I
had gone far enough, and then we came
upon the velvet ant. Famous for having the
longest stinger in the world, it sent me into agonizing
pain for nearly 30 minutes. Ahh! (grunting) (heavy breathing) Okay, let me get back here! - [Cameraman] You alright? What are you feeling? - Gooo! (heavy breathing) Oh wow! My next challenge was
the tarantula hawk, which is ranked as the
second most painful sting in the insect kingdom. Here we go. (pacing instrumental music) Ahhh! Ahhh! (heavy breathing) - [Cameraman] You alright?
- Ahhh! The pain was so intense
that it put me on the ground with my arm in a
state of paralysis for nearly five minutes. Ahhh! I can't move my arm! I was ascending the
sting pain index, and I could see the
peak of the mountain. It looked down at me
with black beady eyes, an alien looking creature
amongst all other animals, and a name that cast fear
into the hearts of men. But before I could
go flesh to stinger, first we needed to
find a bullet ant. Today is bullet
ant challenge day. I'm actually pretty
excited about this. As long as we could
find a bullet ant, I'm gonna get stung by one. So, guys keep your eyes peeled, these little ants
can be anywhere. Well, I guess they
aren't really little. They're probably about this big. So, let's head down here
into the rainforest, and see if we could find one. - [Cameraman] Alright. - Believe it or not, bullet
ants are incredibly common on the Caribbean
side of Costa Rica. And setting the
stage for a sting was only going to
take a single one. It seems simple, however, finding them can be
quite the challenge, especially when dealing
with some of the most difficult filming conditions
we have ever faced. Oh boy, that is the disorienting
thing about the rainforest, everything looks the same no
matter what direction you turn. Mario! (man shouting in the distance) Yeah, alright, found him, ha! Got nervous there for a second. Let's keep going. For days we scoured the jungle, traversed rushing rivers, fought torrential rainfall, and sloshed through what seemed
like a endless maze of mud. The goal was to find a creature
no longer than a needle, in a haystack that literally
spanned thousands of acres. It seems as if all was lost. Then finally, after
several days of searching, the sun came out and
fate took its course. I just saw an ant
up on the tree here. Come up really slow, this might be a nest. - [Mario] You think
you got a nest? - I mean, the ground
looks the same as it has in most of the jungle, but there is a hole here, I definitely saw a large ant
moving up on the side of that but before I just
storm up there. - [Mario] You just see
one or you see a few? - I saw one ant, one ant, but this looks like
there's a hole right there. - [Mario] Where? - [Coyote] You see that, this
looks like it could be a nest. - [Cameraman] I
don't see the hole. Keep pointing to it. Oh, I just saw it. - [Coyote] There's one
coming out right there. - [Mario] I see it coming out. - He's definitely right there. Let me see if I can
get him on the stick. There we go, there we go. - [Mario] You got him? - Ooo, it's going
right towards my hand. That is a bullet ant
right there, hold on. I'm just gonna put
it in the container. Ooo! Ah! Oh! - [Mario] Mark, watch out. I think there is... - [Mark] I got one on me? - [Mario] I think so, man. I think they're swarming. - We have definitely
found a bullet ant nest, there's no question about it. I was in there trying
to get a single ant, and they started swarming out. Okay, this just went
from slightly dangerous to extremely dangerous
because there was one crawled up on my hand
and I just got startled, and I flicked it off of me. I need to go back to
get the container, we need to get an ant. (weary instrumental music) Alright, come on,
get on the stick. - [Mario] Got one. - [Coyote] My hand's
shaking, I got one. Nope, it came off. (weary instrumental music) I got one, I got one. Back up, back up, back up. It's goin' right
towards my hand! Oh boy, it's attacking
the tip of the stick. I'm gonna put it down
right here on the dirt! Ah! Alright, I'm gonna
get it in this cup. Got it! - [Mario] It walked right in! - Ha-Ha! Whoo! (laughs) Holy cow! Oh my gosh! Hold on wait, check your
legs, check your legs. - [Mario] See anything on me? - [Mark] No, you're good. - Oh my gosh! (heavy breathing) If I was that nervous
just to catch the ant, I can't imagine how
nervous I'm going to be to actually be stung by it. Awe, this is wild. Alright, let's take the ant
down here into a flatter area, get the scene under control. It's time to go through with
the bullet ant challenge. - [Mario] Let's do it. - Whoo! Yes! Got our ant! (leery instrumental music) Guys, I don't know, I
don't know, I don't know. We have caught a bullet ant, and we have it in
the glass capsule, and right now Mark is filming
the final macro shots, and I am two, yes,
two minutes away from being stung by the
insect that's supposedly has that most painful sting
in the insect kingdom. Actually seeing the
bullet ant face to face, coyote pack, it is
unbelievably intimidating. I have a feeling
that it is going to be unbelievably painful, but I am ready. (deep breath)
This is it. We are here. This is Costa Rica, and
that ladies and gentlemen, dare I say it, is one
monster sized bullet ant. Alright, before
we get into this, let's just go over
some basic safety. For everybody out
there watching, we have taken all the
proper medical precautions. What we have right here
is an epinephrin pen in case my body reacts
negatively to the venom. Now, I will note that
there are no reported cases of humans dying from the
sting of a bullet ant. - [Mark] Alright Coyote,
so what's the game plan? What are you thinkin' here? How are we gonna get you
stung by the bullet ant? - Yeah, how are we gonna get
me stung by the bullet ant? I love the that question Mark, I appreciate that. Okay, well this one is very
similar to the velvet ant. This is gonna go
down one of two ways. The first thing
that we're gonna try is I'm gonna lift up
the glass capsule, and then we're gonna
place it there. If it doesn't sting me like that then I will use the forceps where I will pick it
up by it's thorax, and just like the tarantula
hawk induce a sting. One way or another, there is no question about
it ladies and gentlemen, today I am going to be
stung by a bullet ant. - [Mark] Alright, it's time. - GoPro rolling? We are rolling. Alright, now what I'm gonna do
is tip up the glass capsule, and then place the ant
down onto my forearm. Here we go. Mark, your shot good? - [Mark] Are you
sure about this? - Yep, no turning back now. Mario, ready? - [Mario] Ready. - [Mark] Let's do it. - Here we go, ant on my skin. One... Two... This is it, no turning back. Three. (heavy breathing) Ant is on my forearm. Look at that. Okay, it's just trying to
climb out of the glass. I don't know if it's realized
it's actually on my arm. It is looking a
little bit agitated. I can feel the little legs
grabbin' onto my skin, and right now it is just trying
to get out of the capsule. It's thinking, "Okay,
something's new." They can probably sense
the heat of my skin, and also the smell of my skin. These ants can pick up
different pheromones. We'll let it go a
few seconds longer. (heavy breathing) And I think similar
to the velvet ant that this ant is
gonna need to be held with forceps to induce a sting. Okay, I'm going to tip
the glass capsule back up, and get the ant under control. Are you ready? - [Mark] Yep. - One, two, control. Here we go. - [Mark] Whoo-hoo, awe man! - Dah! - [Mark] You alright? - I got the GoPro. - [Mark] Tell me what's going
through your head right now. What was that like? - I'm lightheaded,
I'm lightheaded. Oh, the nerves that
that takes guys. When the ants were
coming out of the nest they were very very angry, and I think at this point
the ant has calmed down, and it's just thinking, "Can I get out of
this glass capsule?" And I was not bitten,
I was not stung. So, what I'm gonna do
now is use the forceps to pick up the ant,
place it onto my forearm, and I'm going to take a sting. Here we go, are you ready? - [Mark] I'm ready. - GoPro is rolling. Okay, I am literally
at the summit of the insect sting pain index. So, what I'm gonna do
now is remove the glass. (heavy breathing) Ant is live, okay. It is out and active. I am going to now pick
it up with the forceps. Got it. (heavy breathing)
There we go. That right there is a perfect
hold right on the thorax, and wow, look at that, the
stinger is already flying. Does that give you
enough space there Mark to be able to see the stinger
as it goes into my arm? - [Mark] Yes sir. - We've got clear
visibility on the abdomen. Here we go. I'm going to move the little
wooden base out of the way. The glass capsule is
right here in frame. Forearm on the table. I'm Coyote Peterson, and I'm about to take on
the bullet ant challenge. Are you ready? - [Mark] Let's do it. - One... (deep breath) Two... Oh my gosh, this is it. Three... Dah! Oh! Oh, it's tuck in my arm! It's stuck in my arm! Ooo! Gosh! The stingers
stuck in my arm look at that! Ooo! Okay, it's off, it's off! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Ooo! - [Mark] You alright? - Oh my God, it is really bad! Oh my gosh, I think it has
the tarantula hawk topped! (bold instrumental music) Gooo! - [Mark] You alright man? - Yep! Ho! Did you see that? The stinger was stuck into my
forearm right into the vein! There is the sting
insertion point right there. Oh my gosh! It is like, rrr, it's hot! Oh, I can feel the venom
already right in my forearm! (heavy breathing) Ahh! (grunting) It is! It's number one! Ahh! (heavy breathing) Oh my gosh! Oh, it's burning more! It's getting worse! Hold on, hold on, hold on! Ahh! Ahh!
(heavy breathing) Ah, my whole arm is
getting really tight. (heavy breathing) Oh my gosh, Mark, put
your arm out here! Just tell them, feel my forearm! - [Mark] Wow. - It is like rock hard, I think it's spasming
up the muscle. Now, the toxin that
comes out of the sting of a bullet ant is
a poneratoxin toxin, which can cause
you to hallucinate, so I don't know how much venom
actually went into my arm. All I know is that the
stinger was in my forearm for a considerable
amount of time. Ahhh! (grunting) Oh my gosh! Owe, oh! Dude, I think my neck is
having a muscle spasm too. My whole muscle structure
is like pounded right now. Ahh! What is that? Okay, that's not good,
let's keep an eye on that. My neck is like stiffening up. My entire arm feels like it's
having a spasm right now. (heavy breathing) Okay. - [Mark] Is it getting
better or worse? - No, it's worse, it's
coming in waves of pain now. Oh my gosh! It is, hold on, I am
super light headed, like super light headed.
(heavy breathing) - [Mark] Do you need some water? - [Mario] You're getting flush,
your face is turning red. And you're getting
puffy under your eye. (heavy breathing) - I'm sweating
bullets right now. Bullets, bullets of sweat
from the bullet ant. Okay, I'm gonna try
to stay composed. We're gonna have to cut
the scene pretty quickly. I'm in a lot of pain right now. Okay, at the moment, I am experiencing hot
radiating waves of pain. It feels as if someone has
stabbed me with a hot poker, and I can actually feel
the venom, it's throbbing, it's very similar to the
bite of the gila monster. When I was bitten by the gila
monster it was intense pain, and then it would reside, and then it would
return with a vengeance. This is...
(heavy breathing) At this point, the tarantula
hawk was already done hurting. This is gettin' worse,
this is gettin' worse. I don't know if I'm gonna be
able to take this for 24 hours. (laughing) It pumped me full of venom. This is gonna be bad. It's one thing to get tagged, and you know, to be,
"Ahh! I got stung!" It's another thing to be like, I'm just hoping you
got that shot Mark where it was literally
latched on and stinging me. Ooo, I am sweating
bullets right now. It is humid, but
my body's on fire. It's been about 20
minutes since the sting, and look at my arm. It feels like it is on fire
about up to my shoulder, extremely painful
right in that region, it's red, it is swollen, but I feel composed enough to
give you guys a proper outro. Now, they say that this pain
is gonna last for 24 hours, and my goodness, if it does,
I'm in for one wild day. But I think it goes
without question that the bullet ant
sting is the most painful that I have faced thus far on
the insect sting pain index. However, as some
of you may know, there are whispers
that there is possibly a more painful sting out there. The warrior wasp may challenge
the bullet ant's claim at the peak of the
insect sting pain index. Am I gonna be willing to
take on that challenge, stay tuned, we'll find out. I'm Coyote Peterson,
be brave, stay wild! We'll see you on
the next adventure! Whoo! What a day! As we returned this legendary
creature back to its colony, the insect was immediately
greeted by the other ants. Like a soldier who had
returned from a great battle, and who would perhaps
share its tale of the giant human it had
defeated with a single sting. And as I watched this
fearless gladiator disappear into the darkness, from my perspective I too felt
as if I had defeated a giant. A giant ladder I challenge
my self to climb, and we've all come to know as
the insect sting pain index. I am proud to say I made it, and when it comes to
the most painful sting in the insect kingdom, so far, it definitely belongs
to the bullet ant. It has been a long 24 hours. Now, they say that the bullet
ant is the 24 hour ant. My arm is still sore today. Guys, looks at my arm. I think the venom actually
scarred the skin right there. I don't know if you
can see it on my face, I'm exhausted, barely
slept at all last night because my arm was
just pulsating. I could feel these hot waves
of pain going though it. I guess we'll see where
it's at in 48 hours. It's still stinging now. Legends are born from
the stories we are told, and as they are passed down
from generation to generation they often times
become so grandiose they are nearly
impossible to believe. But when it comes to
the legend of bala, trust me when I say
the tales are true. If you thought the bullet
ant sting was intense, make sure to check
out the aftermath, and the steps I took
to immediately reduce
the searing pain. And don't forget subscribe, so you can join me and the crew on this season of
Breaking Trail. (bold world music)
(birds chirping)
I've been tracking this guys progress, working his way up to the bullet ant. That being said, I feel like I've taken on my own challenge to see how anxious I can get watching a video.
While this guy is a boss, I want to give a shout out to this tribe in the Amazon who have a tradition of sticking their hands into gloves filled with dozens of bullet ants. https://youtu.be/XwvIFO9srUw
Brave wilderness is still awesome though .
Screaming in pain
"You okay man?"
I love this guys video quality. If you like a more comical version and 100 stings at the same time, you should watch Hamish and Andy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzPwRYnLF5A
Actual sting starts around 12:00 but the whole video is interesting
People are complaining about the amount of filler in this video but, considering what he just did, and the amount of stings leading up to this, I'd say he's earned the right to grand stand for a little while.
Props to the camera crew though. Been subscribed for about a year now and damn the cinematography and camera work keeps on getting better every episode.
I was a little sad he did not do the Glove version of this.
He's like the transporter accident of Jake Gyllenhaal and Charlie Day.