A nearly blind Acropyga goeldii worker ant tends to root-feeding mealybugs in an underground chamber. The ants depend on their hemipteran "cattle" for food, while the mealybugs are kept safe from predators and carried to new roots by their ant guards.

Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
An Acropyga goeldii worker carries a mealybug.

Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Ants of the Camponotus subgenus Myrmobrachys often walk with their gasters tucked characteristically under their bodies.

Monte Verde, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Portrait of Camponotus sericeiventris, one of the most recognizable ants in Central and South America. This species is a tree-dwelling insect that, remarkably, can glide back to a trunk when dislodged, steering with her flattened, aerodynamic legs.

Carrancas, Minas Gerais, Brazil
When threatened, a worker Camponotus sericeiventris tucks her gaster under her body, aiming the acid-ejecting acidopore forward at the perceived threat.

Carrancas, Minas Gerais, Brazil
When threatened, a worker Camponotus sericeiventris tucks her gaster under her body, aiming the acid-ejecting acidopore forward at the perceived threat.

Carrancas, Minas Gerais, Brazil
A Camponotus melanoticus worker carries a bit of soil from an excavation deep in her nest.

Carrancas, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Camponotus cingulatus

Morretes, Paraná, Brazil
Camponotus rufipes is among the most common ant species in parts of South America.

Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
Ants of the Camponotus subgenus Myrmobrachys often walk with their gasters tucked characteristically under their bodies.

Monte Verde, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Ants of the Camponotus subgenus Myrmobrachys often walk with their gasters tucked characteristically under their bodies.

Monte Verde, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Ants of the Camponotus subgenus Myrmobrachys often walk with their gasters tucked characteristically under their bodies.

Monte Verde, Minas Gerais, Brazil
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all images and text © Alex Wild 2001-2013