[0:00]There are 30 million people living in the Amazon.
[0:06]Many are descendants of the first waves of incomers, rubber farmers and slave traders.
[0:16]But some are descended from people who've been in the Amazon for 10,000 years. The Sate Marry people have another relationship with ants, one that is altogether more extraordinary.
[0:33]This team of hunters are after some menacing prey.
[0:46]Most hunting parties creep through the forest so as not to disturb their quarry.
[0:53]But there's no need for stealth today. These men want their target to know they're coming. At last, they've found what they're looking for. Bullet ants.
[1:13]These giants are some of the largest ants in the world.
[1:20]3 cm long, they sport serrated jaws that can cut through human flesh like butter. But it's the other end of the ant that is most fearsome.
[1:38]A bullet ants name says it all. Their sting is the most painful in the insect world.
[1:50]Agitating the ants with smoke and sound brings more and more to the surface. One sting would inject neurotoxic venom so powerful it feels like being shot. The ants have evolved this weapon as a defense mechanism.
[2:14]The excruciating pain tricks any attacker into believing it has suffered a far greater injury than an ant sting and causes it to run away. But capturing this hazardous haul is just the beginning.
[2:33]Enduring the terrible pain a bullet ant can inflict is a right of passage for every Sate man. Back in the village, women prepare for the arrival of the ferocious ants.
[2:50]The leaves of a cashew tree have special properties.
[2:56]Children are taught that the youngest and juiciest leaves are the best ones to pick.
[3:10]Soaked in water, they make a natural chloroform.
[3:28]Knocking the ants unconscious is the only way they can be handled.
[3:45]It's a technique that has been passed down the generations.
[3:55]Dozy from the sleeping potion, the ants submit without a struggle.
[4:10]The weave of a palm leaf glove pinches each ant around the waist and holds them tight.
[4:21]Dozens trapped sting inwards in a living mitten.
[4:48]Every Sate man will pass through this ritual, not once, but 20 times during his lifetime. Today it's the turn of two boys.
[5:08]They've both done it before.
[5:18]But knowing what lies ahead is no comfort.
[5:27]The ants have shaken off their sleeping draft. Smoke agitates them even further. They're wide awake and angry. And each boy must keep his hand inside this gauntlet for a full 10 minutes. Each sting is 30 times more painful than that of a wasp. And in each glove there are over 120 stinging ants.
[6:12]Just one sting could cause an allergic reaction powerful enough to kill.
[6:22]Dancing and chanting helps keep the boys minds focused. The pain is so intense, it can play tricks on the psyche. Men have reported wanting to cut off their own hands to escape it. But they must also keep moving. Dancing keeps the blood pumping through their veins, which helps dissipate the poison and sweating releases it from the body. The boys hands swell and become paralyzed. The pain spreads up their arms to their chests. And it will last for 24 hours.
[7:10]The whole village supports them and helps them through the ordeal. The Sate people say that the toxins in the ant stings immunize them against disease and will keep them strong and healthy. And they believe that undergoing this agonizing trial helps each boy take a step towards being a true man.
