Autothysis

Autothysis means that an animal will purposefully kill itself in defense or for the benefit of the group too. Imagine you are in a group with your friends and a scary monster comes along. You might decide to sacrifice yourself by jumping on the monster to protect your friends, even though you will die.

Some animals can do that too, like certain types of ants, where they have a special sac filled with a toxic fluid in their bodies. When they are under attack, they can rupture their body and kill themselves, but also release the toxic fluid to defend the rest of their team.

So you see, autothysis means that certain creatures have the ability to protect their group and are willing to give up their own life to do it.