But the insect has a long mouth, thought to be used for finding its food

Ant was dead and only one specimen was found, so information is limited

Frog was found in Ecuador, belongs to the species known as 'little devil'

Researchers found a new species of ant in the contents of a frog's stomach

Frog vomit might not strike you as the most exciting of substances.

But the contents of the amphibians' stomachs is a treasure trove for researchers hunting for new species of ants.

In the latest of these discoveries, scientists have identified a new species of ant in the vomit of a poisonous frog found in Ecuador.

Scientists have identified a new species of ant (pictured) in the vomit of a 'devil's frog', a poisonous frog found in Ecuador. The newly discovered ant, which is less than a quarter of an inch long, may use its long mouth to capture prey

THE NEW ANT SPECIES The new ant, Lenomyrmex hoelldobleri, 'was discovered in a stomach content sample of the dendrobatid frog' the researchers, led by Professor Christian Rabeling, wrote. Since there is only one specimen of the ant and it is dead, little information is known about it. It has a long mouth, which could be used by the ant to catch even smaller animals hiding in crevices. Advertisement

The new ant, which is less than a quarter of an inch long, was found in the vomit from a species known as the little devil frog, or 'rana diablito' in Spanish.

Frogs can often be a good way to discover new species of insects, the researchers say, because they forage and can reach places humans cannot.

The scientists capture wild poisonous frogs, Oophaga sylvatica, and flush out their bellies.

Then they search the vomit to see what discoveries it could be hiding.

The researchers, from the University of Rochester in New York, described the ant in a paper published in the open access journal ZooKeys.

The new ant, Lenomyrmex hoelldobleri, 'was discovered in a stomach content sample of the dendrobatid frog' the researchers, led by Professor Christian Rabeling, wrote.

Poisonous frogs like the devil's frog get their toxic properties from organic compounds found in the ants they eat.

This means they are good at catching the insects, making them particularly useful to researchers hunting for ants.

The new ant was found in the vomit from a species known as the little devil frog, or 'rana diablito' in Spanish (example of the species pictured). Poisonous frogs like this get their toxic properties from the ants they eat

Since there is only one specimen of the ant, named Lenomyrmex hoelldobleri, little information is known about it. It has a long mouth (pictured) which could be used by the ant to catch even smaller animals hiding in crevices

Professor Rabeling told National Geographic although some people think the planet has been explored as much as possible, 'nothing could be further from the truth'.

Since there is only one specimen of the ant and it is dead, little information is known about it.

It has a long mouth, which could be used by the ant to catch even smaller animals hiding in crevices.

There are now seven known species belonging to the Lenomyrmex genus that the ant is part of, and the researchers say this specimen combines features of a few of the others.

'This species is named in honour of our colleague and friend Bert Hölldobler on the occasion of his 80th birthday,' the authors wrote.

'Because of Bert's passion for ants, his pioneering and high-caliber contributions to entomology and behavioral ecology, as well as his dedication to mentoring the next generation of myrmecologists, myrmecology [the study of ants] has become its own discipline in entomology, and continues to attract enthusiastic students who share Bert's love for ants.'

A dorsal view of the new ant species is shown. The insect is only a quarter of an inch (0.63 cm) long. There are now seven known species belonging to the Lenomyrmex genus the ant is part of, and the researchers say this specimen combines features of a few of the others

Geographic distribution of the ant genus Lenomyrmex in Central and South America. The new species, Lenomyrmex hoelldobleri, was discovered in the stomach content of a frog found in Ecuador