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Leafcutter Ants

All articles tagged with #leafcutter ants

science1 month ago•14 min saved

Ant Farmers Cultivate a 66-Million-Year Fungus, Earlier Than Humans

Leafcutter ants don’t eat the leaves they haul home; they feed them to an underground fungus, Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, which the ants then eat via nutrient-rich gongylidia. This farming relationship began about 66 million years ago and predates human agriculture by tens of millions of years, featuring a complex caste system, pathogen defenses with antibiotic-producing bacteria, and a queen that carries a fungal inoculum to start new farms.

via Space Daily|

#coevolution #escovopsis-defense #fungus-farming

science-and-technology2 years ago•6 min saved

"Leafcutter Ants' Fungal Gardens: Insights for Future Biofuels"

Scientists have developed a new imaging method to study the symbiotic relationship between leafcutter ants and a fungus that degrades plant material, revealing important insights into the molecular intricacies of this process. The research provides valuable information for future biofuels and bioproducts development, shedding light on how a specialized microbial community composed of fungus, leafcutter ants, and bacteria naturally degrades plants. The team's findings, published in Nature Chemical Biology, offer a deeper understanding of the complex environmental systems involved and could lead to more efficient methods for breaking down plant materials for various applications.

via Phys.org|

#biofuels #fungal-garden #leafcutter-ants

science-and-technology3 years ago•4 min saved

Ants Make Surprising Appearances in Unexpected Places.

The American Museum of Natural History has created a new exhibit of half a million leafcutter ants, which took six years to develop. The ants were slow to adjust to their new home, failing to harvest enough leaves to sustain their fungal gardens. The museum designed a sprawling, open exhibit made from lab-tested, “ant-approved” materials, from braided stainless steel to old-fashioned Legos. The team stocked the foraging area with blackberry bramble and filled the surrounding moat with water to help keep the ants contained. The ants have finally completed the entire route and even began winding their way across an elevated maze detour.

via The New York Times|

#agriculture #american-museum-of-natural-history #habitat