Leaf cutter Ants of Costa Rica
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Uploaded by Douglasstrattonphoto on Jun 22, 2009
Leafcutter ants are social insects found in warmer regions of the Americas. These unique ants have evolved an advanced agricultural system based on ant-fungus mutualism. They feed on special structures called gongylidia produced by a specialized fungus that grows only in the underground chambers of the ants' nest.
Different species of leafcutter ants use different species of fungus, but all of the fungi the ants use are members of the Lepiotaceae family. The ants actively cultivate their fungus, feeding it with freshly-cut plant material and maintaining it free from pests and molds. This mutualist relationship is further augmented by another symbiotic partner, a bacterium that grows on the ants and secretes chemicals- essentially the ants use portable antimicrobials. Leaf cutter ants are sensitive enough to adapt to the fungi's reaction to different plant material, apparently detecting chemical signals from the fungus. If a particular type of leaf is toxic to the fungus the colony will no longer collect it.
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Can you train these guys to lift heavy furniture such as sofas, I'm moving out of my apartment in about a week so yeah
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Vivaldi an+~+~*
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Wonderful ;)
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this is amazing, get such a feel of actually been there, utterly wonderful
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lol . at 0:25 the one going over the stick looked like it had a shark fin (:
XsnowpeaX 1 year ago 3
nice :)
PrinzLangweilig 2 years ago