With a tender hand, Malcolm lifted the bridal veil to see the radiant face of Valerie smiling up at him.
That’s when he noticed the first African Fire Ant feeling its way through her hair. He flicked it away, then gave a yelp of pain as another ant bit his inner thigh.
He smashed the insect with his hand, releasing a chemical signal that caused the others to attack. Columns of stinging, biting, squirming ants swarmed all over him, Valerie and the priest. They frantically tore at their clothes to reach the burning skin beneath.
Like a super-organism, the ants poured into the guests, targeting the young, elderly and slow. The little page-boy, now smothered in ants, was writhing madly on the ground like a well-dressed grub.
The last thing Malcolm saw with his remaining eye was the wedding ring, and most of his fingers, being carried off into the rain forest. This really wasn’t the special day he and Valerie had hoped for.
You’ll have a much better day out with New Zealand’s wildlife. Enjoy Wellington Zoo’s new walk-through precinct: Meet the Locals, He Tuku Aroha.