Megalomyrmex leoninus

Icononzo, Tolima, Colombia
Megalomyrmex leoninus

Icononzo, Tolima, Colombia
Megalomyrmex adamsae, queen and workers.

Panama; captive colony at the University of Texas
Uneasy relationship: a Trachymyrmex fungus-growing ant (left) encounters a Megalomyrmex adamsae that is a parasite of her nest.

Panama; captive colony at the University of Texas
Megalomyrmex adamsae & Trachymyrmex.  Ant nests present a rich concentration of resources for organisms that can get past the ants' defenses.  Nests often contain parasites, and one of the more intriguing cases of parasitism in the new world tropics involves another ant species, the parasite Megalomyrmex adamsae (the smaller ant at center-left).  These solenopsidine ants inhabit nests of fungus-growing attine ants and feed on the brood and gardens of their hosts.

Panama; captive colony at the University of Texas
Megalomyrmex adamsae, queen and workers.

Panama; captive colony at the University of Texas
Megalomyrmex adamsae queen and workers. This species is a social parasite that inhabits the nest of Trachymyrmex fungus-growing ants.

Panama; captive colony at the University of Texas
Megalomyrmex adamsae

Panama; captive colony at the University of Texas
Megalomyrmex adamsae, a social parasite of Trachymyrmex fungus-growing ants.

Panama; captive colony at the University of Texas
Uneasy relationship: a Trachymyrmex fungus-growing ant (left) encounters a Megalomyrmex adamsae that is a parasite of her nest.

Panama; captive colony at the University of Texas
Uneasy relationship: a Trachymyrmex fungus-growing ant (left) encounters a Megalomyrmex adamsae that is a parasite of her nest.

Panama; captive colony at the University of Texas
Uneasy relationship: a Trachymyrmex fungus-growing ant (left) encounters a Megalomyrmex adamsae that is a parasite of her nest.

Panama; captive colony at the University of Texas
See photo in original gallery.
all images and text © Alex Wild 2001-2013