Farming Ants: Leafcutters and Fungus Growers
Hundreds of ant species live as farmers in the warmer regions of North and South America. These insects- a single evolutionary radiation- cultivate an edible fungus fed with bits of vegetative debris, or in the case of the leafcutter ants, with live vegetation.
In a remnant of Brazil's once-great Atlantic coastal rainforest, an Acromyrmex disciger leafcutter ant carries a leaf back to her nest. The forest where these ants live has been 95% destroyed by human activities.
Morretes, Paraná, Brazil
In a remnant of Brazil's once-great Atlantic coastal rainforest, an Acromyrmex disciger leafcutter ant carries a leaf back to her nest. The forest where these ants live has been 95% destroyed by human activities.
Morretes, Paraná, Brazil
Canon EOS 7D |
Original size: 3335x5002 |
Current: 400x600 |
