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1. A New Ectoparasitoid Species of Pseudogaurax Malloch, 1915 (Diptera: Chloropidae), Attacking the Fungus-Growing Ant, Apterostigma dentigerum Wheeler, 1925 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Author:
Cely T. González; William T. Wcislo; Roberto Cambra; Terry A. Wheeler; Hermógenes Fernández-Marín
Source:
Annals of the Entomological Society of America 2016 v.109 no.4 pp. 639-645
ISSN:
1938-2901
Subject:
Apterostigma dentigerum; Chloropidae; Phoridae; adults; brood rearing; fungus gardens; immatures; insect larvae; mycelium; new species; parasitism; parasitoids; pupae; wasps; wet season
Abstract:
... Fungus-growing ants (Attini) are abundant and diverse, yet only one taxon of flies (Phoridae) and one of wasps (Diapriinae) are known parasitoids, and the biology of most species is not well known. Here we describe the first evidence for an ant parasitoid in the family Chloropidae (Diptera), in which larvae of Pseudogaurax paratolmos Wheeler, new species, parasitize larvae of the ant, Apterostigma ...
DOI:
10.1093/aesa/saw023

2. A Volatile Semiochemical Released by the Fungus Garden of Leaf-Cutting Ants

Author:
K. K. A. Sousa; G. C. Catalani; T. M. R. Gianeti; R. S. Camargo; N. Caldato; V. M. Ramos; L. C. Forti
Source:
Florida entomologist 2020 v.103 no.1 pp. 1-8
ISSN:
1938-5102
Subject:
Formicidae; citrus pulp; forage; foraging; fungi; fungicides; fungus gardens; health status; leaf-cutting ants; nutrient requirements; semiochemicals; symbiosis; volatile compounds
Abstract:
... The symbiosis between fungi and leaf-cutting ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) has aroused the interest of researchers about the mechanism used by ants to select plants. The nutritional needs of the fungus garden, and the absence of potentially deleterious substances from plants, are criteria for selection by foraging workers. This is supported by behavioral experiments using fungicide with baits (ci ...
DOI:
10.1653/024.103.0401

3. A new type of egg produced by foundress queens of Atta texana (Attini, Formicidae)

Author:
C.-C. Fang; U. G. Mueller
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2019 v.66 no.4 pp. 601-609
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Atta texana; diploidy; eclosion; eggs; fluorescence microscopy; fungi; fungus gardens; males; nutrient content; nutrients; oviposition; social insects
Abstract:
... In the fungus-growing ant genus Atta, foundress queens nourish their brood and incipient fungus gardens with nutrients derived from trophic eggs. We discovered a third kind of egg laid by Atta foundresses in addition to reproductive and trophic eggs. We use fluorescent microscopy to show that this third type of eggs represents reproductive eggs that are unviable and fail to develop. Unviable repro ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-019-00724-w

4. Actinomycetes inhibit filamentous fungi from the cuticle of Acromyrmex leafcutter ants

Author:
Rômulo Augusto Cotta Dângelo; Danival José de Souza; Thais Demarchi Mendes; Joel da Cruz Couceiro; Terezinha Maria Castro Della Lucia
Source:
Journal of basic microbiology 2016 v.56 no.3 pp. 229-237
ISSN:
0233-111X
Subject:
Acromyrmex; Pseudonocardia; Streptomyces; anti-infective properties; bacteria; fungi; fungus gardens; integument; mycoparasites; secondary metabolites
Abstract:
... Actinomycetes bacteria associated with leafcutter ants produce secondary metabolites with antimicrobial properties against Escovopsis, a fungus specialized in attacking the gardens of fungus‐growing ants, which denies the ants their food source. Because previous studies have used fungi isolated from fungus gardens but not from ant integument, the aims of the present study were to isolate actinomyc ...
DOI:
10.1002/jobm.201500593

5. Age polyethism in the leaf-cutting ant Acromyrmex subterraneus brunneus Forel, 1911 (Hym., Formicidae)

Author:
Camargo, R.S.; Forti, L.C.; Lopes, J.F.S.; Andrade, A.P.P.; Ottati, A.L.T.
Source:
Journal of applied entomology 2007 v.131 no.2 pp. 139-145
ISSN:
0931-2048
Subject:
Acromyrmex subterraneus; brood rearing; foraging; fungus gardens; insect castes; leaf-cutting ants; longevity; polyethism; probability
Abstract:
... This study describes and quantifies the behavioural acts of two laboratory colonies of Acromyrmex subterraneus brunneus by investigating worker age polyethism. Twenty-nine behavioural acts were recorded during the 19-week observation period. Young individuals performed tasks inside the nest related to brood care and care for the fungus garden, whereas older individuals performed activities outside ...
DOI:
10.1111/j.1439-0418.2006.01129.x

6. Agro-predation by Megalomyrmex ants on Mycetophylax fungus-growing ants

Author:
D. C. Cardoso; M. P. Cristiano; C. B. da Costa-Milanez; J. Heinze
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2016 v.63 no.3 pp. 483-486
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Basidiomycota; Cyphomyrmex; dunes; fungi; fungus gardens; mutualism; parasites; social insects; Brazil
Abstract:
... Fungus-growing ants are a remarkable taxon of New World ants that engage in a mutualistic symbiosis with basidiomycete fungi. Their fungus-gardens are valuable resources and are exploited in countless ways by parasites and other beneficiaries outside of the ant-fungi mutualism. Here, for the first time, we report on the agro-predatory behavior of the ant Megalomyrmex incisus on Mycetophylax confor ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-016-0487-x

7. Appetitive and aversive learning of plants odors inside different nest compartments by foraging leaf-cutting ants

Author:
Andrés Arenas; Flavio Roces
Source:
Journal of insect physiology 2018 v.109 pp. 85-92
ISSN:
0022-1910
Subject:
Acromyrmex; Pyracantha coccinea; foraging; fungi; fungus gardens; insect physiology; leaf-cutting ants; learning; leaves; odors; paper; social insects
Abstract:
... Cues inside the nest provide social insect foragers with information about resources currently exploited that may influence their decisions outside. Leaf-cutting ants harvest leaf fragments that are either further processed as substrate for their symbiotic fungus, or disposed of if unsuitable. We investigated whether Acromyrmex ambiguus foragers develop learned preferences for olfactory cues they ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.jinsphys.2018.07.001

8. Bacterial symbiont sharing in Megalomyrmex social parasites and their fungus‐growing ant hosts

Author:
Joanito Liberti; Panagiotis Sapountzis; Lars H. Hansen; Søren J. Sørensen; Rachelle M. M. Adams; Jacobus J. Boomsma
Source:
Molecular ecology 2015 v.24 no.12 pp. 3151-3169
ISSN:
0962-1083
Subject:
Acinetobacter; Bartonellaceae; Cyphomyrmex; Entomoplasmatales; Pseudonocardia; Sericomyrmex amabilis; Trachymyrmex; Wolbachia; bacterial communities; diet; fungi; fungus gardens; genotype; hosts; ingestion; insects; parasites; phylogeny; polymerase chain reaction; predators; ribosomal RNA; sequence analysis; symbionts; symbiosis; trophallaxis
Abstract:
... Bacterial symbionts are important fitness determinants of insects. Some hosts have independently acquired taxonomically related microbes to meet similar challenges, but whether distantly related hosts that live in tight symbiosis can maintain similar microbial communities has not been investigated. Varying degrees of nest sharing between Megalomyrmex social parasites (Solenopsidini) and their fung ...
DOI:
10.1111/mec.13216
PubMed:
25907143
PubMed Central:
PMC5008137

9. Bait station preferences in two Macrotermes species

Author:
Naeem Iqbal; Lahiru S. Wijedasa; Theodore A. Evans
Source:
Journal of pest science 2017 v.90 no.1 pp. 217-225
ISSN:
1612-4758
Subject:
Macrotermes; Rhinotermitidae; baiting; fungus gardens; habitats; pests; plant litter; termite control; wood; Singapore
Abstract:
... Baiting is considered to be a relatively environmentally benign termite control method; however, all commercial baiting systems are designed for species in the Rhinotermitidae and are used primarily in temperate countries. Fungus-growing termites in the Macrotermitidae can be important pests in tropical countries; they can be difficult to control using all available methods, and there are no baiti ...
DOI:
10.1007/s10340-016-0778-z

10. Broad Escovopsis‐inhibition activity of Pseudonocardia associated with Trachymyrmex ants

Author:
Lucas A. Meirelles; Thaís D. Mendes; Scott E. Solomon; Odair C. Bueno; Fernando C. Pagnocca; Andre Rodrigues
Source:
Environmental microbiology reports 2014 v.6 no.4 pp. 339-345
ISSN:
1758-2229
Subject:
fungus gardens; parasites; Pseudonocardia; Trachymyrmex; symbionts; Acromyrmex; Atta; bioassays; gardens; pathogens; anti-infective agents; mycelium; bacteria
Abstract:
... Attine ants maintain an association with antibiotic‐producing Actinobacteria found on their integuments. Evidence supports these bacteria as auxiliary symbionts that help ants to defend the fungus gardens against pathogens. Using Pseudonocardia strains isolated from Trachymyrmex ants, we tested whether the inhibitory capabilities of such strains are restricted to Escovopsis parasites that infect g ...
DOI:
10.1111/1758-2229.12132
PubMed:
24992532

11. Candicidin-producing Streptomyces support leaf-cutting ants to protect their fungus garden against the pathogenic fungus Escovopsis

Author:
Haeder, Susanne; Wirth, Rainer; Herz, Hubert; Spiteller, Dieter
Source:
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2009 v.106 no.12 pp. 4742-4746
ISSN:
0027-8424
Subject:
biosynthesis; symbionts; entomopathogenic fungi; leaf-cutting ants; Acromyrmex; Hypocreales; Streptomyces; candicidin; bacteria; antifungal properties
Abstract:
... Leaf-cutting ants such as Acromyrmex octospinosus live in obligate symbiosis with fungi of the genus Leucoagaricus, which they grow with harvested leaf material. The symbiotic fungi, in turn, serve as a major food source for the ants. This mutualistic relation is disturbed by the specialized pathogenic fungus Escovopsis sp., which can overcome Leucoagaricus sp. and thus destroy the ant colony. Mic ...
DOI:
10.1073/pnas.0812082106
PubMed:
19270078
PubMed Central:
PMC2660719

12. Caste specialization in behavioral defenses against fungus garden parasites in Acromyrmex octospinosus leaf-cutting ants

Author:
Abramowski, D.; Currie, C. R.; Poulsen, M.
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2011 v.58 no.1 pp. 65-75
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Acromyrmex octospinosus; ant colonies; bacteria; brood rearing; chemical defenses; cultivars; foraging; fungi; fungus gardens; image analysis; leaf-cutting ants; parasites; parasitism; permeates; polyethism; scanning electron microscopy; social insects; spore germination; spores
Abstract:
... Division of labor and caste specialization plays an important role in many aspects of social insect colony organization, including parasite defense. Within leaf-cutting ant colonies, worker caste specialization permeates colony tasks ranging from foraging, substrate incorporation, brood care, and chemical defenses via glandular secretions and mutualistic bacteria. Leaf-cutting ants rely on protect ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-010-0117-y

13. Changes in the cuticular hydrocarbon profile associated with the molting cycle correlate with the hydrocarbon profile of the fungus cultivated by the ant Atta sexdens

Author:
L. Valadares; F. S. do Nascimento
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2017 v.64 no.4 pp. 591-596
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Atta sexdens; Basidiomycota; alkanes; chemical analysis; cultivars; developmental stages; fungi; fungus gardens; leaf-cutting ants; molting; mutualism; rearing; social insects
Abstract:
... Leaf-cutting ants live in obligate mutualism with a basidiomycete fungus that they use as a rearing site and food resource. Chemical analyses of the fungus gardens kept by these ants have revealed the presence of hydrocarbons that also occur in the epicuticle of the ants. However, whether it is the fungus or the ants which are the ultimate producers of these compounds is not yet clear. To shed lig ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-017-0581-8

14. Chemical Ecology of Streptomycesalbidoflavus Strain A10 Associated with Carpenter Ant Camponotus vagus

Author:
Anna A. Baranova; Alexey A. Chistov; Anton P. Tyurin; Igor A. Prokhorenko; Vladimir A. Korshun; Mikhail V. Biryukov; Vera A. Alferova; Yuliya V. Zakalyukina
Source:
Microorganisms 2020 v.8 no.12 pp. -
ISSN:
2076-2607
Subject:
Camponotus; Streptomyces albidoflavus; antifungal properties; antimycin A; biosynthesis; carpenter ants; chemical ecology; cytotoxicity; depsipeptides; ecological communities; fungus gardens; hydrophobicity; microorganisms; microsymbionts; pathogens; secondary metabolites; symbiosis
Abstract:
... Antibiotics produced by symbiotic microorganisms were previously shown to be of crucial importance for ecological communities, including ants. Previous works on ant–actinobacteria symbiosis are mainly focused on farming ants, which use antifungal microbial secondary metabolites to control pathogens in their fungal gardens. In this work, we studied microorganisms associated with carpenter ant Campo ...
DOI:
10.3390/microorganisms8121948

15. Chemical basis of the synergism and antagonism in microbial communities in the nests of leaf-cutting ants

Author:
Schoenian, Ilka; Spiteller, Michael; Ghaste, Manoj; Wirth, Rainer; Herz, Hubert; Spiteller, Dieter
Source:
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2011 v.108 no.5 pp. 1955-1960
ISSN:
0027-8424
Subject:
Acromyrmex echinatior; Leucoagaricus; Pseudonocardia; Streptomyces; agar; antifungal agents; antifungal properties; databases; desorption; fungi; fungus gardens; image analysis; integument; ionization; leaf-cutting ants; liquid chromatography; mass spectrometry; microbial communities; pathogens; phylogeny; screening; secondary metabolites; soil bacteria; symbionts; symbiosis; synergism; valinomycin
Abstract:
... Leaf-cutting ants cultivate the fungus Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, which serves as a major food source. This symbiosis is threatened by microbial pathogens that can severely infect L. gongylophorus. Microbial symbionts of leaf-cutting ants, mainly Pseudonocardia and Streptomyces, support the ants in defending their fungus gardens against infections by supplying antimicrobial and antifungal compou ...
DOI:
10.1073/pnas.1008441108
PubMed:
21245311
PubMed Central:
PMC3033269

16. Chemical control of leaf-cutting ants: how do workers disperse toxic bait fragments onto fungus garden?

Author:
Gabriela C. Catalani; Kátia K.A. Sousa; Roberto S. da Camargo; Nadia Caldato; Carlos A.O. Matos; Luiz C. Forti
Source:
Revista Brasileira de entomologia 2019 v.63 no.4 pp. 290-295
ISSN:
0085-5626
Subject:
active ingredients; adenosine triphosphate; chemical control; fungi; fungus gardens; leaf-cutting ants; mechanism of action; mitochondria; pellets; sodium channels; toxicity
Abstract:
... Leaf-cutting ants are controlled with toxic baits. For the method’s greater efficiency, the baits must be distributed and processed by workers during fungus cultivation. To test hypotheses whether the mode of action of the active ingredients, which blocks the sodium channels and interrupts the production of ATP in the mitochondria, interferes with fragment distribution in nests; the dispersion of ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.rbe.2019.09.004

17. Colony Dehydration and Water Collection by Specialized Caste in the Leaf-Cutting Ant Atta Sexdens Rubropilosa

Author:
Ribeiro, Pedro Leite; Navas, Carlos A.
Source:
Journal of insect behavior 2008 v.21 no.6 pp. 549-558
ISSN:
0892-7553
Subject:
Atta sexdens rubropilosa; adults; eggs; fungus gardens; humidity; insect behavior; larvae; leaf-cutting ants; longevity; morphs; silica gel; social structure
Abstract:
... Social organization enables leaf-cutting ants to keep appropriate micro-ecological nest conditions for the fungus garden (their main food), eggs, larvae and adults. To maintain stability while facing changing conditions, individual ants must perceive destabilising factors and produce a proper behavioral response. We investigated behavioral responses to experimental dehydration in leaf-cutting ants ...
DOI:
10.1007/s10905-008-9150-3

18. Colony Productivity of the Fungus-Gardening Ant Trachymyrmex septentrionalis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in a Florida Pine Forest

Author:
Seal, J.N.; Tschinkel, W.R.
Source:
Annals of the Entomological Society of America 2006 v.99 no.4 pp. 673-682
ISSN:
0013-8746
Subject:
insect colonies; insect behavior; sandy soils; nesting sites; forest habitats; Formicidae; Pinus palustris; insect reproduction; insect nests; fungi; Florida
Abstract:
... The ecology of the fungus-gardening ant Trachymyrmex septentrionalis McCook (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) was investigated in a northern Florida longleaf pine, Pinus palustris Mill., forest. This ant is extremely abundant in pine sandhill in the Apalachicola National Forest, in north Florida; a hectare contains on average >1,000 nests, 235,000 T. septentrionalis workers, and 3.5 kg of fungus garden. W ...
DOI:
10.1603/0013-8746(2006)99[673:CPOTFA]2.0.CO;2

19. Colony fitness and garden growth in the asexual fungus-growing ant Mycocepurus smithii (Attini, Formicidae)

Author:
C.-C. Fang; F.-H. Chang; P. Duong; J. Kurian; U. G. Mueller
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2020 v.67 no.1 pp. 35-49
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Mycocepurus smithii; eggs; fungus gardens; gardens; laboratory experimentation; monogyny; polygyny; social insects
Abstract:
... Nest-founding in the fungus-growing ant Mycocepurus smithii is typically by single queens (monogyny) and colonies transition to multiple queens (polygyny) as they grow larger. Here, we study the transition from monogyny to polygyny of M. smithii under lab conditions. We hypothesize that the worker-to-queen ratio affects colony growth, fungus-garden growth, and colony survival. Monogyne colonies wi ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-019-00741-9

20. Comparative analysis of fungal communities in colonies of two leaf-cutting ant species with different substratum preferences

Author:
Jaqueline S. Pereira; Rafael R. Costa; Nilson S. Nagamoto; Luiz C. Forti; Fernando C. Pagnocca; Andre Rodrigues
Source:
Fungal ecology 2016 v.21 pp. 68-75
ISSN:
1754-5048
Subject:
Atta sexdens rubropilosa; Penicillium citrinum; Trichoderma spirale; Trichosporon; ant colonies; cultivars; foraging; fungal communities; fungi; fungus gardens; gardens; leaf-cutting ants; Brazil
Abstract:
... Fungus gardens of leaf-cutting ants harbor diverse alien fungi in addition to their fungal cultivar. Previous work suggested that alien microorganisms are likely derived from the substrata foraged by ant workers and incorporated into the fungus gardens. To test this hypothesis, we sampled 1014 garden fragments from 16 field colonies of Atta sexdens rubropilosa (a dicot-cutting ant) and Atta capigu ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.funeco.2016.03.004

21. Comparative morpho-physiology of the metapleural glands of two Atta leaf-cutting ant queens nesting in clayish and organic soils

Author:
Alexsandro Santana Vieira; Maria Izabel Camargo-Mathias; Flavio Roces
Source:
Arthropod structure & development 2015 v.44 no.5 pp. 444-454
ISSN:
1467-8039
Subject:
Atta sexdens rubropilosa; antibiotics; antiseptics; evolution; fungus gardens; leaf-cutting ants; microorganisms; nesting; organic matter; organic soils; pathogens; queen insects; risk; soil depth; soil horizons
Abstract:
... Queens of leaf-cutting ants found their nests singly, each consisting of a vertical tunnel and a final horizontal chamber. Because of the claustral mode of nest founding, the queen and/or her initial fungus garden are exposed to threats imposed by several soil pathogens, and the antibiotic secretions produced by their metapleural glands are considered a main adaptation to deal with them. Nests of ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.asd.2015.06.005

22. Complete Excavation and Mapping of a Texas Leafcutting Ant Nest

Author:
Moser, J.C.
Source:
Annals of the Entomological Society of America 2006 v.99 no.5 pp. 891-897
ISSN:
0013-8746
Subject:
Atta texana; leaf-cutting ants; insect nests; physical models; inquilinism; Louisiana
Abstract:
... A medium-sized nest of the Texas leafcutting ant, Atta texana (Buckley), in northern Louisiana was excavated completely, and a three-dimensional model of its external and subterranean features was constructed. In total, 97 fungus gardens, 27 dormancy cavities, and 45 detritus cavities were located. At the lower center of the funnel-shaped nest was a large central cavity, which in winter functions ...
Handle:
10113/1620
DOI:
10.1603/0013-8746(2006)99[891:CEAMOA]2.0.CO;2

23. Complete Genome of Enterobacteriaceae Bacterium Strain FGI 57, a Strain Associated with Leaf-Cutter Ant Fungus Gardens

Author:
Frank O. Aylward; Daniel M. Tremmel; David C. Bruce; Patrick Chain; Amy Chen; Karen Walston Davenport; Chris Detter; Cliff S. Han; James Han; Marcel Huntemann; Natalia N. Ivanova; Nikos C. Kyrpides; Victor Markowitz; Kostas Mavrommatis; Matt Nolan; Ioanna Pagani; Amrita Pati; Sam Pitluck; Shweta Deshpande; Lynne Goodwin; Tanja Woyke; Cameron R. Currie
Source:
Genome announcements 2013 v.1 no.1 pp. e00238-12
ISSN:
2169-8287
Subject:
Atta colombica; Enterobacteriaceae; bacteria; biomass; chromosomes; fungus gardens; genome; leaf-cutting ants
Abstract:
... The Enterobacteriaceae bacterium strain FGI 57 was isolated from a fungus garden of the leaf-cutter ant Atta colombica. Analysis of its single 4.76-Mbp chromosome will shed light on community dynamics and plant biomass degradation in ant fungus gardens. ...
DOI:
10.1128/genomeA.00238-12
PubMed:
23469353
PubMed Central:
PMC3587947

24. Complete Genome of Serratia sp. Strain FGI 94, a Strain Associated with Leaf-Cutter Ant Fungus Gardens

Author:
Frank O. Aylward; Daniel M. Tremmel; Gabriel J. Starrett; David C. Bruce; Patrick Chain; Amy Chen; Karen W. Davenport; Chris Detter; Cliff S. Han; James Han; Marcel Huntemann; Natalia N. Ivanova; Nikos C. Kyrpides; Victor Markowitz; Kostas Mavrommatis; Matt Nolan; Ioanna Pagani; Amrita Pati; Sam Pitluck; Hazuki Teshima; Shweta Deshpande; Lynne Goodwin; Tanja Woyke; Cameron R. Currie
Source:
Genome announcements 2013 v.1 no.2 pp. e00239-12
ISSN:
2169-8287
Subject:
Atta colombica; Serratia; biomass; chromosomes; fungus gardens; genome; leaf-cutting ants; mutualism
Abstract:
... Serratia sp. strain FGI 94 was isolated from a fungus garden of the leaf-cutter ant Atta colombica. Analysis of its 4.86-Mbp chromosome will help advance our knowledge of symbiotic interactions and plant biomass degradation in this ancient ant-fungus mutualism. ...
DOI:
10.1128/genomeA.00239-12
PubMed:
23516234
PubMed Central:
PMC3622970

25. Complexity in an obligate mutualism: do fungus-gardening ants know what makes their garden grow

Author:
Seal, Jon N.; Tschinkel, Walter R.
Source:
Behavioral ecology and sociobiology 2007 v.61 no.8 pp. 1151-1160
ISSN:
0340-5443
Subject:
Trachymyrmex septentrionalis; chitin; diet; feces; flowers; frass; fungi; fungus gardening; fungus gardens; gardening; gardens; leaves; microbial biomass; mutualism; progeny
Abstract:
... Fungus gardening ants make clear choices among fungal substrates (food for their fungus). It has been proposed, but never demonstrated, that these ants are collecting the best for their symbiotic fungus and the production of ant biomass (fitness). The goal of this study was to determine whether preferred substrates lead to higher fitness in the attine, Trachymyrmex septentrionalis. Preferences exh ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00265-006-0328-4

26. Contamination Route of Leaf-Cutting Worker Ants Analyzed Through a Fat-Soluble Tracer Dye in Toxic Bait

Author:
L C Forti; R S Camargo; A P P Andrade; G C Catalani; K K A Sousa; A A C Silva; N Caldato; V M Ramos
Source:
Neotropical entomology 2019 v.48 no.2 pp. 349-355
ISSN:
1519-566X
Subject:
Acromyrmex; active ingredients; chemical control; dyes; fungal growth; fungus gardens; insecticides; laboratory experimentation; leaf-cutting ants; models; toxicity; worker ants
Abstract:
... Our study seeks to discover contamination routes of leaf-cutting worker ants during chemical control by formicide baits. To do so, toxic baits containing fat-soluble tracer dye were provided to colonies of three subspecies of Acromyrmex under laboratory conditions, in order to assess the proportion of dyed workers by size category, as well as dyed internal morphological structures. Results showed ...
DOI:
10.1007/s13744-018-0652-1

27. Cultural significance of termites in sub-Saharan Africa

Author:
Arnold van Huis
Source:
Journal of ethnobiology and ethnomedicine 2017 v.13 no.1 pp. 8
ISSN:
1746-4269
Subject:
Termitidae; ancestry; baits; biomass; birds; bricks; cellulose; common names; edible insects; fertilizers; fish; fungus gardens; geochemical prospecting; geophagia; harvesting; interviews; landscapes; mushrooms; nationalities and ethnic groups; poultry; soil; swarming; termite mounds; tropics; women; Sub-Saharan Africa
Abstract:
... BACKGROUND: The number of termite species in the world is more than 2500, and Africa with more than 1000 species has the richest intercontinental diversity. The family Termitidae contains builders of great mounds up to 5 m high. Colonies are composed of casts: a queen, a king, soldiers and workers. Some species of termite cultivate specialised fungi to digest cellulose. Termites constitute 10% of ...
DOI:
10.1186/s13002-017-0137-z
PubMed:
28126033
PubMed Central:
PMC5270236

28. Digging effort in leaf-cutting ant queens (Atta sexdens rubropilosa) and its effects on survival and colony growth during the claustral phase

Author:
Camargo, R. S.; Forti, L. C.; Fujihara, R. T.; Roces, F.
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2011 v.58 no.1 pp. 17-22
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Atta sexdens rubropilosa; energy expenditure; environmental factors; foraging; fungi; fungus gardens; leaf-cutting ants; mortality; progeny; queen insects; social insects
Abstract:
... Nest foundation in the leaf-cutting ant Atta sexdens is claustral, and the single queen completely relies on its body reserves throughout, approximately, 9 weeks until the first workers emerge and initiate foraging. Nest digging is much time- and energy-consuming, and it is an open question how queens decide on the length of the tunnel they dig and therefore the depth of the initial chamber. Shall ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-010-0110-5

29. Disease defence through generations: leaf‐cutter ants and their symbiotic bacteria

Author:
Douglas C. Woodhams; Robert M. Brucker
Source:
Molecular ecology 2013 v.22 no.16 pp. 4141-4143
ISSN:
0962-1083
Subject:
Acromyrmex echinatior; Pseudonocardia; animals; bacteria; evolution; feathers; fungus gardening; fungus gardens; genetic variation; intestinal microorganisms; leaf-cutting ants; microbial ecology; microsymbionts; nuclear genome; nutrition; soil; symbiosis; vegetation
Abstract:
... Microbial ecology of animals is taking on significance in the modern dialogue for the biology of species. Similar to a nuclear genome, the entire bacterial assemblage maintains an ancestral signal of the host's evolution leading to cophylogeny between the host and the microbes they harbour (Brucker & Bordenstein 2012b). The stability of such associations is of great interest as they provide a mean ...
DOI:
10.1111/mec.12431

30. Disentangling nutritional pathways linking leafcutter ants and their co‐evolved fungal symbionts using stable isotopes

Author:
Jonathan Z. Shik; Winnie Rytter; Xavier Arnan; Anders Michelsen
Source:
Ecology 2018 v.99 no.9 pp. 1999-2009
ISSN:
0012-9658
Subject:
Atta colombica; adults; ammonium nitrate; carbon; coevolution; composts; crops; foraging; fungi; fungus gardens; gardeners; glucose; habitats; herbivores; hyphae; ingestion; insects; isotope labeling; larvae; nitrogen; nutrients; stable isotopes; symbionts; vegetation; Argentina; Southeastern United States
Abstract:
... Leafcutter ants are the ultimate insect superorganisms, with up to millions of physiologically specialized workers cooperating to cut and transport vegetation and then convert it into compost used to cultivate co‐evolved fungi, domesticated over millions of years. We tested hypotheses about the nutrient‐processing dynamics governing this functional integration, tracing ¹⁵N‐ and ¹³C‐enriched substr ...
DOI:
10.1002/ecy.2431
PubMed:
30067862
PubMed Central:
PMC6174977

31. Dispersal of Attaphila fungicola, a symbiotic cockroach of leaf-cutter ants

Author:
Z. I. Phillips; M. M. Zhang; U. G. Mueller
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2017 v.64 no.2 pp. 277-284
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Atta texana; Blattodea; containers; females; flight; foraging; fungus gardens; gardens; leaf-cutting ants; males; reproductives; social insects; survival rate
Abstract:
... The myrmecophile cockroach Attaphila fungicola lives in the nests of leaf-cutter ants (Atta texana and A. cephalotes) and uses the female winged reproductives (i.e., female alates) of its host as vectors for the first phase of its dispersal. It is unknown whether A. fungicola remain with vectoring A. texana females after mating flights and throughout A. texana nest founding and subsequent colony d ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-016-0535-6

32. Do Workers from Subspecies Acromyrmex subterraneus Prepare Leaves and Toxic Baits in Similar Ways for Their Fungus Garden?

Author:
L. C. Forti; A. P. P. Andrade; K. K. A. Sousa; R. S. Camargo; C. A. O. Matos; N. Caldato; G. C. Catalani; V. M. Ramos
Source:
Neotropical entomology 2020 v.49 no.1 pp. 12-23
ISSN:
1519-566X
Subject:
Acromyrmex subterraneus; Eucalyptus; forests; fungus gardens; insect control; insecticides; jaws; leaf-cutting ants; leaves; pellets; toxicity
Abstract:
... Toxic baits are the most efficient method to control leaf-cutter ants in eucalyptus forests for paper and cellulose production. For the proper use of these baits, insecticide compounds must reach workers and contaminate them. Thus, understanding how these baits are processed inside the nests is vital for a successful control, especially when it comes to genus Acromyrmex. Lack of information on tox ...
DOI:
10.1007/s13744-019-00708-2

33. Does resource‐mediated stress affect colony personality in leaf‐cutting ants?

Author:
Lailla C Gandra; Karina D Amaral; Joel C Couceiro; Raul NC Guedes; Terezinha MC Della Lucia
Source:
Pest management science 2021 v.77 no.1 pp. 96-103
ISSN:
1526-498X
Subject:
Acromyrmex subterraneus subterraneus; Nasturtium; Tropaeolum majus; aggression; animals; fungus gardens; personality; pest management; pests; toxicity
Abstract:
... BACKGROUND: Animal personality refers to behavioral consistency and propensity. In social insects, little is known about the interplay between colony personality and colony foraging. This study aimed to assess personality traits among colonies of the leaf‐cutting ants Acromyrmex subterraneus subterraneus and Acromyrmex subterraneus molestans and examine their behavioral consistency when provided w ...
DOI:
10.1002/ps.6033

34. Effect of the presence of brood and fungus on the nest architecture and digging activity of Acromyrmex subterraneus Forel (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)

Author:
Carlos Magno dos Santos; Roberto da Silva Camargo; Mariana Brugger; Luiz Carlos Forti; Juliane Floriano Santos Lopes
Source:
Revista Brasileira de entomologia 2017 v.61 no.1 pp. 80-85
ISSN:
0085-5626
Subject:
Acromyrmex subterraneus; Atta sexdens rubropilosa; cylinders; fungi; fungus gardens; habitats; larvae; pupae; soil
Abstract:
... This study investigated the stimuli that trigger digging behavior in Acromyrmex subterraneus during nest building. The hypothesis was that the presence of the fungus garden and/or brood triggers the excavation of tunnels and chambers. For the experiment, the excavation rate of individually marked workers kept in plastic cylinders filled with soil was recorded. Four treatments were applied: (1) 30 ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.rbe.2016.12.002

35. Effects of cycloheximide on the mortality of Atta sexdens leaf-cutting worker ants

Author:
Kátia Kaelly Andrade Sousa; Roberto da Silva Camargo; Luiz Carlos Forti; Nadia Caldato
Source:
Revista Brasileira de entomologia 2018 v.62 no.3 pp. 169-171
ISSN:
0085-5626
Subject:
Atta sexdens; cycloheximide; diet; forage; fungi; fungicides; fungus gardens; ingestion; leaf-cutting ants; leaves; mortality; nutrient requirements; pulp; toxicity; worker ants
Abstract:
... Leaf-cutting ants live symbiotically with a fungus that they cultivate on the plant leaves that they cut. The innumerous studies on the plant selection mechanism used by leaf-cutting ants show the researchers’ interest in this issue. Many classical studies propose that plants are selected according to the fungus garden nutritional needs and the absence of potentially harmful substances. This hypot ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.rbe.2018.04.002

36. Effects of entomopathogenic fungi on the mortality and immune system of the leaf‐cutting ant Acromyrmex subterraneus subterraneus

Author:
Joel da Cruz Couceiro; Wesler Luiz Marcelino; Karina Dias Amaral; Lailla Cristina Gandra; Danival José de Souza; Terezinha Maria Castro Della Lucia
Source:
Entomologia experimentalis et applicata 2016 v.161 no.2 pp. 152-159
ISSN:
0013-8703
Subject:
Acromyrmex subterraneus subterraneus; Actinobacteria; Aspergillus ochraceus; Metarhizium anisopliae; antibiotics; bacteria; bioassays; conidia; encapsulation; entomopathogenic fungi; fungus gardens; immune response; immune system; immunosuppression; innate immunity; insect immunity; leaf-cutting ants; mortality; parasites
Abstract:
... Acromyrmex leaf‐cutting ants use the antibiotics produced by ectosymbionts (Actinobacteria) to suppress the growth of Escovopsis spp., which are the specialized parasites of attine fungus gardens. However, the spectrum of activity of these bacteria and their interactions with insect immune systems have not been thoroughly studied. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether the presence of ...
DOI:
10.1111/eea.12500

37. Effects of substrate, ant and fungal species on plant fiber degradation in a fungus-gardening ant symbiosis

Author:
Alexandria M. DeMilto; Monte Rouquette; Ulrich G. Mueller; Katrin Kellner; Jon N. Seal
Source:
Journal of insect physiology 2017 v.98 pp. 301-308
ISSN:
0022-1910
Subject:
Acromyrmex; Atta texana; Leucoagaricus; Trachymyrmex septentrionalis; digestion; endo-1,4-beta-glucanase; flowers; frass; fungi; fungus gardening; fungus gardens; garden residues; hemicellulose; insect physiology; leaf-cutting ants; leaves; lignocellulose; pectins; plant fibers; plant tissues; solid wastes; starch; symbionts; symbiosis; waste composition
Abstract:
... Fungus-gardening or attine ants have outsourced most of their digestive function to a symbiotic fungus. The ants feed their fungus – essentially an external digestive organ – a variety of substrates of botanical origin, including fresh and dried flowers, leaves and insect frass (processed leaves). Although plant tissues are rich in fibers (lignocelluloses, hemicelluloses, pectins and starches) and ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.jinsphys.2017.02.001

38. Effects of subterranean termite nest architectures on earth embankment seepage and stability

Author:
Ying Li; Zhi-Yong Dong; Dong-Zi Pan; Cun-Hong Pan
Source:
Paddy and water environment 2020 v.18 no.2 pp. 367-384
ISSN:
1611-2490
Subject:
Odontotermes; adults; computer software; equations; farming systems; fungus gardens; geometry; groundwater flow; insect infestations; mathematical models; paddies; seepage; subterranean termites; surveys; termite mounds; China
Abstract:
... Subterranean termites (Odontotermes formosanus Shiraki) that build nests in the soil matrices of earth embankments may adversely affect the stability of these structures in paddy farming regions of southern China. An adult termite nest comprises a primary chamber, fungus gardens, passageways, and other shelter tubes. These porous architectures enable high hydraulic conductivity and rapid groundwat ...
DOI:
10.1007/s10333-019-00788-1

39. Energetics of newly-mated queens and colony founding in the fungus-gardening ants Cyphomyrmex rimosus and Trachymyrmex septentrionalis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Author:
SEAL, JON N.; TSCHINKEL, WALTER R.
Source:
Physiological entomology 2007 v.32 no.1 pp. 8-15
ISSN:
0307-6962
Subject:
Cyphomyrmex rimosus; Trachymyrmex septentrionalis; biomass; females; fungus gardening; fungus gardens; gardening; progeny
Abstract:
... The energetics of colony founding is investigated in the fungus gardening ants (Attini) Trachymyrmex septentrionalis and Cyphomyrmex rimosus. Similar to most ants, inseminated queens of these two species found nests independently unaccompanied by workers (haplometrosis). Whereas most ant founding queens seal themselves in a chamber and do not feed when producing a brood entirely from metabolic sto ...
DOI:
10.1111/j.1365-3032.2006.00534.x

40. Escovopsis trichodermoides sp. nov., isolated from a nest of the lower attine ant Mycocepurus goeldii

Author:
Virginia E. Masiulionis; Marta N. Cabello; Keith A. Seifert; Andre Rodrigues; Fernando C. Pagnocca
Source:
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek 2015 v.107 no.3 pp. 731-740
ISSN:
0003-6072
Subject:
Acromyrmex subterraneus; Atta; DNA barcoding; Mycocepurus goeldii; Trachymyrmex; conidia; conidiophores; fungi; fungus gardens; internal transcribed spacers; leaf-cutting ants; new species; phylogeny; ribosomal DNA; species diversity; Brazil; Trinidad and Tobago
Abstract:
... Currently, five species are formally described in Escovopsis, a specialized mycoparasitic genus of fungus gardens of attine ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: tribe Attini). Four species were isolated from leaf-cutting ants in Brazil, including Escovopsis moelleri and Escovopsis microspora from nests of Acromyrmex subterraneus molestans, Escovopsis weberi from a nest of Atta sp. and Escovopsis lentecr ...
DOI:
10.1007/s10482-014-0367-1

41. Evolutionary history of the symbiosis between fungus-growing ants and their fungi

Author:
Chapela, I.H.; Rehner, S.A.; Schultz, T.R.; Mueller, U.G.
Source:
Science 1994 v.266 no.5191 pp. 1691-1694
ISSN:
0036-8075
Subject:
animal behavior; symbiosis; ribosomal DNA; symbionts; phylogeny; Lepiota; nucleotide sequences; Formicidae
Abstract:
... The evolutionary history of the symbiosis between fungus-growing ants (Attini) and their fungi was elucidated by comparing phylogenies of both symbionts. The fungal phylogeny based on cladistic analyses of nuclear 28S ribosomal DNA indicates that, in contrast with the monophyly of the ants, the attine fungi are polyphyletic. Most cultivated fungi belong to the basidiomycete family Lepiotaceae; how ...
DOI:
10.1126/science.266.5191.1691
PubMed:
17775630

42. Extensive exchange of fungal cultivars between sympatric species of fungus-growing ants

Author:
Green, A.M.; Mueller, U.G.; Adams, M.M.
Source:
Molecular ecology 2002 v.11 no.2 pp. 191-195
ISSN:
0962-1083
Subject:
sympatry; animal behavior; amplified fragment length polymorphism; nests; coevolution; Formicidae; mutualism; genetic markers; fungi; Panama
DOI:
10.1046/j.1365-294X.2002.01433.x
PubMed:
11856421

43. Forage collection, substrate preparation, and diet composition in fungus-growing ants

Author:
DE FINE LICHT, HENRIK H.; BOOMSMA, JACOBUS J.
Source:
Ecological entomology 2010 v.35 no.3 pp. 259-269
ISSN:
0307-6946
Subject:
Apterostigma; Cyphomyrmex rimosus; artificial selection; coevolution; crops; diet; flowers; forage; frass; fungus gardens; hulls; humans; insect colonies; leaf-cutting ants; nectar; plant litter; rearing; seeds; subsistence farming; vegetation; yeasts
Abstract:
... 1. Variation and control of nutritional input is an important selective force in the evolution of mutualistic interactions and may significantly affect coevolutionary modifications in partner species. 2. The attine fungus-growing ants are a tribe of more than 230 described species (12 genera) that use a variety of different substrates to manure the symbiotic fungus they cultivate inside the nest. ...
DOI:
10.1111/j.1365-2311.2010.01193.x

44. Foraging for the fungus: why do Acromyrmex subterraneus (Formicidae) queens need to forage during the nest foundation phase?

Author:
Tatiane A. Sales; Antônio M. O. Toledo; Arthur Zimerer; Juliane F. S. Lopes
Source:
Ecological entomology 2021 v.46 no.6 pp. 1364-1372
ISSN:
0307-6946
Subject:
Acromyrmex subterraneus; body weight; entomology; fungi; fungus gardens; leaf-cutting ants; lipid content; lipids; oviposition; prices; progeny; symbionts; water content; weight loss
Abstract:
... 1. Semiclaustral ant queens must pay the price of foraging to guarantee their survival and also that of their brood through the nest foundation phase. For leaf‐cutting ant species, the challenge is even greater, as they also need to cultivate their symbiont fungus. 2. We hypothesised that suppressing foraging activity could reflect in larger offspring and higher survival, as queens would be entire ...
DOI:
10.1111/een.13083

45. Foundress queen mortality and early colony growth of the leafcutter ant, Atta texana (Formicidae, Hymenoptera)

Author:
H. E. Marti; A. L. Carlson; B. V. Brown; U. G. Mueller
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2015 v.62 no.3 pp. 357-363
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Aspergillus flavus; Atta texana; Fusarium oxysporum; Megaselia scalaris; death; flight; fungi; fungus gardens; social insects; survival rate; Texas
Abstract:
... Nest-founding queens of social insects typically experience high mortality rates. Mortality is particularly severe in leafcutter ants of the fungus-growing ant genus Atta that face the challenge of cultivating a delicate fungus garden in addition to raising brood. We quantified foundress queen survivorship of Atta texana that were collected in northwest Texas and maintained in single-queen laborat ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-015-0413-7

46. Fungal communities in gardens of the leafcutter ant Atta cephalotes in forest and cabruca agrosystems of southern Bahia State (Brazil)

Author:
Bárbara Monique dos Santos Reis; Aline Silva; Martín Roberto Alvarez; Tássio Brito de Oliveira; Andre Rodrigues
Source:
Fungal biology 2015 v.119 no.12 pp. 1170-1178
ISSN:
1878-6146
Subject:
Atta cephalotes; Trichoderma spirale; ant colonies; community structure; foraging; fungal communities; fungi; fungus gardens; gardens; habitats; leaf-cutting ants; ordination techniques; rain forests; shade agroforestry systems; symbionts; Brazil
Abstract:
... Leaf-cutting ants interact with several fungi in addition to the fungal symbiont they cultivate for food. Here, we assessed alien fungal communities in colonies of Atta cephalotes. Fungus garden fragments were sampled from colonies in the Atlantic Rainforest and in a cabruca agrosystem in the state of Bahia (Brazil) in two distinct periods to evaluate whether differences in nest habitat influence ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.funbio.2015.09.001

47. Fungal communities in the garden chamber soils of leaf‐cutting ants

Author:
Andre Rodrigues; Michel R. Z. Passarini; Milene Ferro; Nilson S. Nagamoto; Luiz C. Forti; Maurício Bacci Jr.; Lara D. Sette; Fernando C. Pagnocca
Source:
Journal of basic microbiology 2014 v.54 no.11 pp. 1186-1196
ISSN:
0233-111X
Subject:
Atta sexdens rubropilosa; Clavariaceae; Penicillium janthinellum; Plectania; Trichoderma spirale; community structure; environmental impact; fungal communities; fungus gardens; gardens; internal transcribed spacers; leaf-cutting ants; soil fungi; soil structure; species diversity; transcription (genetics); Brazil
Abstract:
... Leaf‐cutting ants modify the properties of the soil adjacent to their nests. Here, we examined whether such an ant‐altered environment impacts the belowground fungal communities. Fungal diversity and community structure of soil from the fungus garden chambers of Atta sexdens rubropilosa and Atta bisphaerica, two widespread leaf‐cutting ants in Brazil, were determined and compared with non‐nest soi ...
DOI:
10.1002/jobm.201200458

48. Fungal nutrition allocation enhances mutualism with fungus-growing termite

Author:
Chun-I Chiu; Jie-Hao Ou; Chi-Yu Chen; Hou-Feng Li
Source:
Fungal ecology 2019 v.41 pp. 92-100
ISSN:
1754-5048
Subject:
Odontotermes; diet; essential amino acids; fatty acid composition; fatty acids; fungi; fungus gardens; mutualism; spores; tissues; tryptophan
Abstract:
... Fungal nodules and aged fungus gardens are products of termite fungiculture systems, and are the diets of termites. To understand the nutrition flow in fungiculture, we quantified the number and mass of fungal nodules produced along with fungus garden maturation and analysed the α-amino acid and fatty acid compositions of fungal nodules, fungus gardens, and termite tissues of a fungus-growing term ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.funeco.2019.04.001

49. Fungus garden platforms improve hygiene during nest establishment in Acromyrmex ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae, Attini)

Author:
H. Fernández-Marín; J. K. Zimmerman; W. T. Wcislo
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2007 v.54 no.1 pp. 64-69
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Acromyrmex octospinosus; biomass; disease transmission; eggs; fungus gardens; gardens; hygiene; larvae; leaf area; organisms; pathogens; pupae; social insects; soil; soil-borne diseases; survival rate
Abstract:
... Physically isolating organisms from disease agents should reduce the likelihood of disease transmission and infection, and increase survival and growth, particularly in more vulnerable, early ontogenetic stages. During nest founding in fungus-growing ants, foundresses of most genera use a garden platform to isolate the incipient fungal garden from the soil of the underground chamber. We studied ne ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-007-0907-z

50. Garden microbiomes of Apterostigma dentigerum and Apterostigma pilosum fungus-growing ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Author:
Cely T. González; Kristin Saltonstall; Hermógenes Fernández-Marín
Source:
journal of microbiology 2019 v.57 no.10 pp. 842-851
ISSN:
1225-8873
Subject:
Apterostigma dentigerum; Clostridiales; Enterobacteriaceae; Hyphomicrobiaceae; Phyllobacteriaceae; Rhodospirillaceae; Xanthomonadaceae; bacteria; bacterial communities; biomass; community structure; fungi; fungus gardens; high-throughput nucleotide sequencing; microbiome; mutualism; pathogens
Abstract:
... Fungus-growing ants share a complex symbiosis with microbes, including fungal mutualists, antibiotic-producing bacteria, and fungal pathogens. The bacterial communities associated with this symbiosis are poorly understood but likely play important roles in maintaining the health and function of fungal gardens. We studied bacterial communities in gardens of two Apterostigma species, A. dentigerum, ...
DOI:
10.1007/s12275-019-8639-0

51. Garden substrate preparation behaviours in fungus-growing ants

Author:
Mangone, D.M.; Currie, C.R.
Source:
Canadian entomologist 2007 v.139 no.6 pp. 841-849
ISSN:
0008-347X
Subject:
interspecific variation; insect behavior; bacteria; leaf-cutting ants; Formicidae; Actinomyces; mutualism; Basidiomycota; insect nests; fungi

52. Growth and enzymatic activity of Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, a mutualistic fungus isolated from the leaf‐cutting ant Atta mexicana, on cellulose and lignocellulosic biomass

Author:
G. Vigueras; D. Paredes‐Hernández; S. Revah; J. Valenzuela; R. Olivares‐Hernández; S. Le Borgne
Source:
Letters in applied microbiology 2017 v.65 no.2 pp. 173-181
ISSN:
0266-8254
Subject:
Atta; Leucoagaricus; agar; carbon; carbon dioxide; carbon dioxide production; carboxymethylcellulose; endo-1,4-beta-glucanase; enzyme activity; fungi; fungus gardens; glucose; grasses; hyphae; internal transcribed spacers; leaf-cutting ants; lignocellulose; microbial biomass; phylogeny; sequence analysis; solid state culture; sugarcane bagasse
Abstract:
... A mutualistic fungus of the leaf‐cutting ant Atta mexicana was isolated and identified as Leucoagaricus gongylophorus. This isolate had a close phylogenetic relationship with L. gongylophorus fungi cultivated by other leaf‐cutting ants as determined by ITS sequencing. A subcolony started with ~500 A. mexicana workers could process 2 g day⁻¹ of plant material and generate a 135 cm³ fungus garden in ...
DOI:
10.1111/lam.12759

53. Growth of Leucoagaricus gongylophorus Möller (Singer) and production of key enzymes in submerged and solid-state cultures with lignocellulosic substrates

Author:
Minerva E. Maya-Yescas; Sergio Revah; Sylvie Le Borgne; Jorge Valenzuela; Eduardo Palacios-González; Eduardo Terrés-Rojas; Gabriel Vigueras-Ramírez
Source:
Biotechnology letters 2021 v.43 no.4 pp. 845-854
ISSN:
0141-5492
Subject:
Atta mexicana; Leucoagaricus; biotechnology; carbon; carbon dioxide; endo-1,4-beta-glucanase; fungal growth; fungi; fungus gardens; grasses; hyphae; laccase; leaves; lignin; lignocellulases; lignocellulose; sugarcane bagasse; xylan; xylanases
Abstract:
... The aim of this study was to characterize the growth of the fungus Leucoagaricus gongylophorus LEU18496, isolated from the fungus garden of the nest of leaf cutter ants Atta mexicana. The fungus garden was cultivated in an artificial laboratory nest and the fungus further grown in submerged (SmC) and solid state (SSC) cultures with sugarcane bagasse, grass or model substrates containing CM-cellulo ...
DOI:
10.1007/s10529-020-03057-y

54. High diversity and low host-specificity of Termitomyces symbionts cultivated by Microtermes spp. indicate frequent symbiont exchange

Author:
Lennart J.J. van de Peppel; Duur K. Aanen
Source:
Fungal ecology 2020 v.45 pp. 100917
ISSN:
1754-5048
Subject:
Microtermes; Termitomyces; fungi; fungus gardens; genetic variation; haplotypes; host specificity; internal transcribed spacers; mutualism; symbionts; South Africa
Abstract:
... Fungus-growing termites (subfamily Macrotermitinae) live in an obligate mutualistic symbiosis with species of the fungal genus Termitomyces (Basidiomycota). Although the species that build large mounds are the most conspicuous, termites of the genus Microtermes construct large underground networks of tunnels connecting many fungus gardens. They are also the only entire genus within the Macrotermit ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.funeco.2020.100917

55. Hygienic behavior, liquid-foraging, and trophallaxis in the leaf-cutting ants, Acromyrmex subterraneus and Acromyrmex octospinosus

Author:
Richard, Freddie-Jeanne; Errard, Christine
Source:
Journal of insect science 2009 v.9 pp. -
ISSN:
1536-2442
Subject:
worker insects; insect colonies; symbiosis; leaf-cutting ants; social insects; liquids; Acromyrmex octospinosus; body size; grooming (animal behavior); trophallaxis; foraging; fungi

56. Identification and characterization of a mesophilic phytase highly resilient to high-temperatures from a fungus-garden associated metagenome

Author:
Hao Tan; Xiang Wu; Liyuan Xie; Zhongqian Huang; Weihong Peng; Bingcheng Gan
Source:
Applied microbiology and biotechnology 2016 v.100 no.5 pp. 2225-2241
ISSN:
0175-7598
Subject:
Coleoptera; Escherichia coli; acid phosphatase; bioinformatics; ecosystems; feeds; fungus gardens; gene overexpression; genes; half life; histidine; metagenomics; microorganisms; phosphates; phytases; phytic acid; temperature; thermal stability
Abstract:
... Phytases are enzymes degrading phytic acid and thereby releasing inorganic phosphate. While the phytases reported to date are majorly from culturable microorganisms, the fast-growing quantity of publicly available metagenomic data generated in the last decade has enabled bioinformatic mining of phytases in numerous data mines derived from a variety of ecosystems throughout the world. In this study ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00253-015-7097-9

57. Insect Symbioses: A Case Study of Past, Present, and Future Fungus-growing Ant Research

Author:
Caldera, Eric J.; Poulsen, Michael; Suen, Garret; Currie, Cameron R.
Source:
Environmental entomology 2009 v.38 no.1 pp. 78-92
ISSN:
0046-225X
Subject:
symbionts; Formicidae; research; mutualism; fungi
Abstract:
... Fungus-growing ants (Attini: Formicidae) engage in an obligate mutualism with fungi they cultivate for food. Although biologists have been fascinated with fungus-growing ants since the resurgence of natural history in the modern era, the early stages of research focused mainly on the foraging behavior of the leaf-cutters (the most derived attine lineage). Indeed, the discovery that the ants actual ...
DOI:
10.1603/022.038.0110
PubMed:
19791600

58. Laccase detoxification mediates the nutritional alliance between leaf-cutting ants and fungus-garden symbionts

Author:
Henrik H. De Fine Licht; Morten Schiøtt; Adelina Rogowska-Wrzesinska; Sanne Nygaard; Peter Roepstorff; Jacobus J. Boomsma
Source:
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2013 v.110 no.2 pp. 583-587
ISSN:
0027-8424
Subject:
Acromyrmex echinatior; Leucocoprinus; ecosystems; farming systems; fungi; fungus gardens; gardens; genes; herbivores; hyphae; laccase; leaf-cutting ants; leaves; mutualism; mycelium; pests; phenolic compounds; phylogeny; pulp; symbionts; tropics
Abstract:
... Leaf-cutting ants combine large-scale herbivory with fungus farming to sustain advanced societies. Their stratified colonies are major evolutionary achievements and serious agricultural pests, but the crucial adaptations that allowed this mutualism to become the prime herbivorous component of neotropical ecosystems has remained elusive. Here we show how coevolutionary adaptation of a specific enzy ...
DOI:
10.1073/pnas.1212709110
PubMed:
23267060
PubMed Central:
PMC3545816

59. Levels of specificity of Xylaria species associated with fungus-growing termites: a phylogenetic approach

Author:
Visser, A.A.; Ros, V.I.D.; De Beer, Z.W.; Debets, A.J.M.; Hartog, E.; Kuyper, T.W.; Laessoe, T.; Slippers, B.; Aanen, D.K.
Source:
Molecular ecology 2009 v.18 no.3 pp. 553-567
ISSN:
0962-1083
Subject:
Termitomyces; Xylaria; fruiting bodies; fungi; fungus gardens; internal transcribed spacers; phylogeny; ribosomal DNA; species diversity; symbiosis; termite mounds; South Africa
Abstract:
... Fungus-growing termites live in obligate mutualistic symbiosis with species of the basidiomycete genus Termitomyces, which are cultivated on a substrate of dead plant material. When the termite colony dies, or when nest material is incubated without termites in the laboratory, fruiting bodies of the ascomycete genus Xylaria appear and rapidly cover the fungus garden. This raises the question wheth ...
DOI:
10.1111/j.1365-294X.2008.04036.x
PubMed:
19161474

60. Macrotermycins A–D, Glycosylated Macrolactams from a Termite-Associated Amycolatopsis sp. M39

Author:
Beemelmanns Christine; Ramadhar Timothy R.; Kim Ki Hyun; Klassen Jonathan L.; Cao Shugeng; Wyche Thomas P.; Hou Yanpeng; Poulsen Michael; Bugni Tim S.; Currie Cameron R.; Clardy Jon
Source:
Organic letters 2017 v.19 no.5 pp. 1000-1003
ISSN:
1523-7052
Subject:
Amycolatopsis; Isoptera; Staphylococcus aureus; antibacterial properties; antifungal properties; chemical structure; fungi; fungus gardens; glycosylation; metabolomics; multigene family; parasites; polyketides
Abstract:
... Bioassay-guided metabolomic analyses led to the characterization of four new 20-membered glycosylated polyketide macrolactams, macrotermycins A–D, from a termite-associated actinomycete, Amycolatopsis sp. M39. M39’s sequenced genome revealed the macrotermycin’s putative biosynthetic gene cluster. Macrotermycins A and C had antibacterial activity against human-pathogenic Staphylococcus aureus and, ...
DOI:
10.1021/acs.orglett.6b03831
PubMed:
28207275
PubMed Central:
PMC6006516

61. Mechanism of leaf‐cutting ant colony suppression by fipronil used in attractive toxic baits

Author:
Lailla C Gandra; Karina D Amaral; Joel C Couceiro; Terezinha MC Della Lucia; Raul NC Guedes
Source:
Pest management science 2016 v.72 no.8 pp. 1475-1481
ISSN:
1526-498X
Subject:
Acromyrmex subterraneus subterraneus; Eucalyptus; ant colonies; baits; charcoal; fipronil; foraging; forests; fungus gardens; grooming (animal behavior); insecticidal properties; insecticides; leaf-cutting ants; paper; planting; progeny; pulp; sublethal effects; tropics
Abstract:
... BACKGROUND: Attractive toxic baits are the prevailing method for managing leaf‐cutting ants in the eucalypt forests planted for the production of pulp, paper, timber and charcoal. For successful use in these baits, the insecticidal compounds need to circumvent the typical defences of the eusocial leaf‐cutting ants. The challenge is to have an insecticide in the bait that will not directly harm and ...
DOI:
10.1002/ps.4239

62. Microbes are trophic analogs of animals

Author:
Shawn A. Steffan; Yoshito Chikaraishi; Cameron R. Currie; Heidi Horn; Hannah R. Gaines-Day; Jonathan N. Pauli; Juan E. Zalapa; Naohiko Ohkouchi
Source:
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2015 v.112 no.49 pp. 15119-15124
ISSN:
0027-8424
Subject:
Acromyrmex; Crustacea; amino acid metabolism; amino acids; antifungal agents; bacteria; biodiversity; diet; fauna; fish; food webs; fungi; fungus gardens; herbivores; isotope fractionation; leaf-cutting ants; mammals; microbiome; mutualism; niches; phylogeny; stable isotopes; tropics
Abstract:
... Significance We report evidence that microbes are trophically equivalent to animals. When bacteria or fungi are fed the same diets as animals, the microbes register the same trophic position as animals. This discovery reframes how microbes can be viewed within food chains and facilitates the inclusion of the microbiome in functional diversity studies. To demonstrate the broad applicability of our ...
Handle:
10113/61927
DOI:
10.1073/pnas.1508782112
PubMed:
26598691
PubMed Central:
PMC4679051
CHORUS:
10.1073/pnas.1508782112
Chorus Open Access:
10.1073/pnas.1508782112

63. Microbial Communities in Different Tissues of Atta sexdens rubropilosa Leaf-cutting Ants

Author:
Alexsandro S. Vieira; Manuela O. Ramalho; Cintia Martins; Vanderlei G. Martins; Odair C. Bueno
Source:
Current microbiology 2017 v.74 no.10 pp. 1216-1225
ISSN:
0343-8651
Subject:
Actinomycetales; Atta sexdens rubropilosa; Bacillales; Burkholderiales; Clostridiales; Enterobacteriales; Entomoplasmatales; Lactobacillales; Syntrophobacterales; bacteria; evolution; fungi; fungus gardens; immune response; leaf-cutting ants; leaves; microbial communities; microsymbionts; midgut; nutrition; parasitism; symbiosis
Abstract:
... Bacterial endosymbionts are common in all insects, and symbiosis has played an integral role in ant evolution. Atta sexdens rubropilosa leaf-cutting ants cultivate their symbiotic fungus using fresh leaves. They need to defend themselves and their brood against diseases, but they also need to defend their obligate fungus gardens, their primary food source, from infection, parasitism, and usurpatio ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00284-017-1307-x

64. Microbial Community Structure of Leaf-Cutter Ant Fungus Gardens and Refuse Dumps

Author:
Scott, Jarrod J.; Budsberg, Kevin J.; Suen, Garret; Wixon, Devin L.; Balser, Teri C.; Currie, Cameron R.
Source:
PloS one 2010 v.5 no.3 pp. -
ISSN:
1932-6203
Subject:
Formicidae; Gram-negative bacteria; ant colonies; biomass; community structure; fungi; fungus gardens; gamma-Proteobacteria; leaf-cutting ants; microbial communities; nutrients; solid wastes
Abstract:
... Background: Leaf-cutter ants use fresh plant material to grow a mutualistic fungus that serves as the ants' primary food source. Within fungus gardens, various plant compounds are metabolized and transformed into nutrients suitable for ant consumption. This symbiotic association produces a large amount of refuse consisting primarily of partly degraded plant material. A leaf-cutter ant colony is th ...
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0009922
PubMed:
20360970
PubMed Central:
PMC2847949

65. More pieces to a huge puzzle: Two new Escovopsis species from fungus gardens of attine ants

Author:
Quimi Vidaurre Montoya; Maria Jesus Sutta Martiarena; Danilo Augusto Polezel; Sérgio akazu; Andre Rodrigues
Source:
MycoKeys 2019 v.46 pp. 97-118
ISSN:
1314-4049
Subject:
Apterostigma; Hypocreaceae; conidiophores; exhibitions; fungi; fungus gardens; genetic markers; genetic variation; internal transcribed spacers; new species; parasites; peptide elongation factors; phylogeny; ribosomal RNA
Abstract:
... Escovopsis (Ascomycota: Hypocreales, Hypocreaceae) is the only known parasite of the mutualistic fungi cultivated by fungus-growing ants (Formicidae: Myrmicinae: Attini: Attina, the “attines”). Despite its ecological role, the taxonomy and systematics of Escovopsis have been poorly addressed. Here, based on morphological and phylogenetic analyses with three molecular markers (internal transcribed ...
DOI:
10.3897/mycokeys.46.30951

66. Mutualistic fungi control crop diversity in fungus-growing ants

Author:
Poulsen, M.; Boomsma, J.J.
Source:
Science 2005 v.307 no.5710 pp. 741-744
ISSN:
0036-8075
Subject:
insect behavior; feces; Acromyrmex octospinosus; mutualism; fungi
Abstract:
... Leaf-cutting ants rear clonal fungi for food and transmit the fungi from mother to daughter colonies so that symbiont mixing and conflict, which result from competition between genetically different clones, are avoided. Here we show that despite millions of years of predominantly vertical transmission, the domesticated fungi actively reject mycelial fragments from neighboring colonies, and that th ...
DOI:
10.1126/science.1106688

67. Naphthoquinone Metabolites Produced by Monacrosporium ambrosium, the Ectosymbiotic Fungus of Tea Shot-Hole Borer, Euwallacea fornicatus, in Stems of Tea, Camellia sinensis

Author:
Cheka Kehelpannala; N. Savitri Kumar; Lalith Jayasinghe; Hiroshi Araya; Yoshinori Fujimoto
Source:
Journal of chemical ecology 2018 v.44 no.1 pp. 95-101
ISSN:
0098-0331
Subject:
Camellia sinensis var. assamica; Euwallacea fornicatus; Fusarium; Pestalotiopsis; Phoma; active ingredients; culture media; endophytes; ethyl acetate; fungi; fungus gardens; habitats; larvae; metabolites; microbial culture; mycelium; naphthoquinones; plantations; spore germination; stems; sterols; tea; India; Sri Lanka
Abstract:
... The tea shot-hole borer beetle (TSHB, Euwallacea fornicatus) causes serious damage in plantations of tea, Camellia sinensis var. assamica, in Sri Lanka and South India. TSHB is found in symbiotic association with the ambrosia fungus, Monacrosporium ambrosium (syn. Fusarium ambrosium), in galleries located within stems of tea bushes. M. ambrosium is known to be the sole food source of TSHB. Six nap ...
DOI:
10.1007/s10886-017-0913-1

68. Natural History and Ecological Correlates of Fungus-Growing Ants (Formicidae: Attini) in the Neotropical Cerrado Savanna

Author:
Leal, Inara R.; Silva, Paulo S.D.; Oliveira, Paulo S.
Source:
Annals of the Entomological Society of America 2011 v.104 no.5 pp. 901-908
ISSN:
0013-8746
Subject:
Acromyrmex; Atta; Cyphomyrmex; Mycetarotes; Mycocepurus; Myrmicocrypta; Sericomyrmex; Trachymyrmex; ant colonies; cerrado; feces; fungi; fungus gardens; habitats; insects; morphometry; natural history; savannas; tropics
Abstract:
... Fungus-growing ants (Formicidae: Attini) comprise a diverse and ecologically important group in Neotropical habitats. Compared with leaf-cutters, however, relatively little is known about the biology of less conspicuous attine species. Here, we compare nest size and structure, colony size and demographic composition, and worker size and polymorphism among the genera Cyphomyrmex, Mycetarotes, Mycoc ...
DOI:
10.1603/AN11067

69. Natural history and ecology of fungus-farming ants: a field study in Atlantic rainforest

Author:
M. U. V. Ronque; R. M. Feitosa; P. S. Oliveira
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2019 v.66 no.3 pp. 375-387
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Mycetarotes parallelus; Mycocepurus smithii; Sericomyrmex; arthropods; diurnal activity; ecosystems; feces; foraging; fungi; fungus gardening; fungus gardens; monophyly; natural history; nesting; pellets; rain forests; social insects; soil; symbionts; vegetables
Abstract:
... Ants in the subtribe Attina belong to a monophyletic group, exclusive to the New World, that contains approximately 250 described species. All attine ants have a mutualistic relationship with the fungus they cultivate as food source. The present study provides a natural history and ecological account of five species of fungus-farming ants in the Brazilian Atlantic rainforest: Mycocepurus smithii, ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-019-00695-y

70. Nest Architecture and Colony Growth of Atta bisphaerica Grass-Cutting Ants

Author:
Adriano Pimentel Farias; Roberto da Silva Camargo; Kátia Kaelly Andrade Sousa; Nadia Caldato; Luiz Carlos Forti
Source:
Insects 2020 v.11 no.11 pp. -
ISSN:
2075-4450
Subject:
Atta; biomass; cerrado; ecosystems; fungus gardens
Abstract:
... Atta grass-cutting ants (Formicidae: Myrmicinae: Attini) are found in the Cerrado biome and build giant nests with hundreds or thousands of large chambers. We assessed for Atta bisphaerica grass-cutting ants whether the total volume of fungus chambers and other nest parameters grow at close or similar proportions to worker numbers in the colony. Data on fungus garden biomass, population, external ...
DOI:
10.3390/insects11110741

71. Nest architecture of the leaf-cutting ant Acromyrmex rugosus rugosus

Author:
Verza, S. S.; Forti, L. C.; Lopes, J. F. S.; Hughes, W. O. H.
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2007 v.54 no.4 pp. 303-309
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Acromyrmex; cement; fungus gardens; leaf-cutting ants; social insects; soil; talc; wastes
Abstract:
... The prominent nests mounds of many ant species are one of the most obvious signs of their presence, yet the subterranean architecture of nests is often poorly known. The present work aimed to establish the external and internal structure of nests of a species of leaf-cutting ant, Acromyrmex rugosus rugosus, by either marking the interior of nests with talcum powder, or forming casts with cement. T ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-007-0943-8

72. New view on origin of attine ant-fungus mutualism: exploitation of a preexisting insect-fungus symbiosis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Author:
Sanchez-Pena, S.R.
Source:
Annals of the Entomological Society of America 2005 v.98 no.2 pp. 151-164
ISSN:
0013-8746
Subject:
evolution; Formicidae; decay fungi; feeding behavior; oviposition sites; mutualism
Abstract:
... Current hypotheses on the origin of the fungus-attine ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) symbiosis propose, as an ancestral first step in the development of fungal cultivation, fortuitous feeding on fungi growing adventitiously on substrates such as rotting wood, insect parts, seeds stored by ants in nests, regurgitated infrabuccal pellets, free-living soil fungi, or mycorrhizae. However, feeding-deter ...
DOI:
10.1603/0013-8746(2005)098[0151:NVOOOA]2.0.CO;2

73. Parabiosis between basal fungus-growing ants (Formicidae, Attini)

Author:
Sanhudo, C. E. D.; Izzo, T. J.; Brandão, C. R. F.
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2008 v.55 no.3 pp. 296-300
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Apterostigma; Cyphomyrmex faunulus; aggression; foraging; fungus gardens; hyphae; immatures; social insects; Brazil
Abstract:
... We describe the first observation of parabiosis between two Attini ants (Apterostigma urichii Forel and Cyphomyrmex faunulus Wheeler) found in northern Manaus, AM, Brazil. Complete, mature colonies of both species were found in a single cavity inside a rotten log, sharing and tending a single combined fungus garden, made up of two distinct halves, each cultivated by one species. Workers of one spe ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-008-1005-6

74. Pathogenic nature of Syncephalastrum in Atta sexdens rubropilosa fungus gardens

Author:
Mariana O Barcoto; Felipe Pedrosa; Odair C Bueno; Andre Rodrigues
Source:
Pest management science 2017 v.73 no.5 pp. 999-1009
ISSN:
1526-498X
Subject:
Atta sexdens rubropilosa; Neotropics; Syncephalastrum; biological control; cultivars; death; entomopathogenic fungi; foraging; fungus gardens; herbivores; insecticides; integrated pest management; leaf-cutting ants; morbidity; mortality; pests; wastes; worker ants
Abstract:
... BACKGROUND: Leaf‐cutter ants are considered to be a major herbivore and agricultural pest in the Neotropics. They are often controlled by environmentally persistent insecticides. Biological control using pathogenic fungi is regarded as an alternative for the management of these insects. Here, we assess whether the filamentous fungus Syncephalastrum sp. is a pathogenic microorganism responsible for ...
DOI:
10.1002/ps.4416

75. Phorid species from Acromyrmex’s hosts and effect on their survival of two fungi proposed for the control of leafcutter ants

Author:
Daniela Goffre; Patricia J. Folgarait
Source:
Entomologia experimentalis et applicata 2019 v.167 no.11 pp. 939-949
ISSN:
0013-8703
Subject:
Acromyrmex; Apocephalus; Beauveria bassiana; Neotropics; Trichoderma; biological control; biological control agents; conidia; eggs; foraging; fungi; fungus gardens; habitats; hosts; insect control; natural enemies; oviposition; parasitism; parasitoids; plantations; pupae; worker ants; Argentina
Abstract:
... Phorid flies (Diptera: Phoridae, Metopinini) are natural enemies of leafcutter ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae, Attini), which are among the most important pests in the Neotropical region. These parasitoids lay their eggs inside worker ants, causing the death of the parasitized ants, and the oviposition attacks on foraging workers interfere with the collection of vegetal material used in fungal gard ...
DOI:
10.1111/eea.12842

76. Phylogeny of the attine ant fungi based on analysis of small subunit ribosomal RNA gene sequences

Author:
Hinkle, G.; Wetterer, J.K.; Schultz, T.R.; Sogin, M.L.
Source:
Science 1994 v.266 no.5191 pp. 1695-1697
ISSN:
0036-8075
Subject:
animal behavior; Agaricus bisporus; symbiosis; ribosomal DNA; symbionts; phylogeny; Lepiota; nucleotide sequences; Atta cephalotes
Abstract:
... Complete 16S-like ribosomal RNA coding regions were obtained from the fungal symbiont of five genera of attine (leaf-cutting) ants and two free-living fungi. Phylogenetic analyses with distance matrix, maximum likelihood, and parsimony methods revealed that the attine fungal symbionts are homobasidiomycetes in the order Agaricales. Comparison of the topology of the attine fungal symbiont phylogene ...
DOI:
10.1126/science.7992052
PubMed:
7992052

77. Plant Selection and Foraging Patterns in Two Species of Leaf‐Cutting Ants (Atta)

Author:
Larry L. Rockwood
Source:
Ecology 1976 v.57 no.1 pp. 48-61
ISSN:
0012-9658
Subject:
Atta cephalotes; Atta colombica; chemistry; correlation; defoliation; energy; foraging; fungus gardens; host plants; leaf-cutting ants; leaves; nutrients; probability; Costa Rica
Abstract:
... Three colonies each of two species of leaf—cutting ants (Atta colombica Guer. and Atta cephalotes L.) were studied for 1 yr in the Guanacaste Province of Costa Rica to determine the following: (1) Do colonies of Atta cut leaves from a limited number of species (i.e., are they selective)? (2) What determines which plant species are attacked? (3) Do leaf—cutters optimize foraging in terms of energy ...
DOI:
10.2307/1936397

78. Presence of Multiparasite Infections Within Individual Colonies of Leaf-Cutter Ants

Author:
Taerum, S.J.; Cafaro, M.J.; Currie, C.R.
Source:
Environmental entomology 2010 v.39 no.1 pp. 105-113
ISSN:
0046-225X
Subject:
Acromyrmex; Atta; leaf-cutting ants; insect colonies; hosts; host-parasite relationships; mixed infection; genotype; mortality; symbiosis; evolution; anamorphs; fungal antagonists; strain differences; nucleotide sequences; microbial genetics
Abstract:
... Host—parasite dynamics can be altered when a host is infected by multiple parasite genotypes. The different strains of parasite are expected to compete for the limited host resources, potentially affecting the survival and reproduction of the host as well as the infecting parasites. Fungus-growing ants, including the well-known leaf-cutters, are an emerging model system for studying the evolution ...
DOI:
10.1603/EN09137
PubMed:
20146845

79. Presence of weed fungus in a non‐social beetle–fungus cultivation mutualism

Author:
WATARU TOKI; ATSUSHI KAWAKITA; KATSUMI TOGASHI
Source:
Ecological entomology 2016 v.41 no.3 pp. 253-262
ISSN:
0307-6946
Subject:
Erotylidae; Formicidae; Fusarium; Isoptera; Wickerhamomyces anomalus; ambrosia beetles; bamboos; culms; cultivars; farming systems; fungus gardens; gardens; insect larvae; internodes; lizards; mutualism; parasites; rearing; social insects; weeds; yeasts
Abstract:
... 1. Farming by non‐human organisms has arisen independently in several animal lineages, allowing them to survive on food sources that are otherwise difficult to access. However, agricultural gardens are prone to invasion by parasites that overgrow cultivars in the absence of host animals. The presence of garden parasites and associated host adaptations are well studied in advanced fungal agricultur ...
DOI:
10.1111/een.12293

80. Queen lipid content and nest growth in the leaf cutting ant (Atta sexdens rubropilosa) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Author:
Roberto da Silva Camargo; Luiz Carlos Forti
Source:
Journal of natural history 2013 v.47 no.1-2 pp. 65-73
ISSN:
1464-5262
Subject:
Atta sexdens; ant nests; biomass; fungi; fungus gardens; leaf-cutting ants; lipid content; lipids; population size; progeny
Abstract:
... The relationship between the queens’ lipid content and nest growth (population size, biomass and nest architecture) was studied from founding up to 1 year. Nests aged 3, 4, 5, 6, 9 and 12 months were dug in the field, and their dimensions were measured. The ant nest population and fungus garden was also collected. The sample was taken to the laboratory where we counted the worker population and we ...
DOI:
10.1080/00222933.2012.738836

81. Queens of the inquiline social parasite Acromyrmex insinuator can join nest-founding queens of its host, the leaf-cutting ant Acromyrmex echinatior

Author:
J. Howe; M. Schiøtt; J. J. Boomsma
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2021 v.68 no.2-3 pp. 255-260
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Acromyrmex echinatior; Acromyrmex insinuator; fungi; fungus gardens; labor force; leaf-cutting ants; parasites; reproduction
Abstract:
... Queens of the inquiline social parasite Acromyrmex insinuator are known to infiltrate mature colonies of Acromyrmex echinatior and to exploit the host’s perennial workforce by producing predominantly reproductive individuals while suppressing host reproduction. Here we report three cases of an A. insinuator queen having joined an incipient colony of A. echinatior that contained only the founding h ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-021-00819-3

82. Rapid shifts in Atta cephalotes fungus-garden enzyme activity after a change in fungal substrate (Attini, Formicidae)

Author:
Kooij, P. W.; Schiøtt, M.; Boomsma, J. J.; De Fine Licht, H. H.
Source:
Insectes sociaux 2011 v.58 no.2 pp. 145-151
ISSN:
0020-1812
Subject:
Atta cephalotes; Leucocoprinus; cell wall components; cell walls; cellulose; diet; enzyme activity; enzymes; fungi; fungus gardens; hemicellulose; leaf-cutting ants; leaves; parboiling; pectins; proteins; rice; social insects; starch; symbionts
Abstract:
... Fungus gardens of the basidiomycete Leucocoprinus gongylophorus sustain large colonies of leaf-cutting ants by degrading the plant material collected by the ants. Recent studies have shown that enzyme activity in these gardens is primarily targeted toward starch, proteins and the pectin matrix associated with cell walls, rather than toward structural cell wall components such as cellulose and hemi ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00040-010-0127-9
PubMed:
21475686
PubMed Central:
PMC3059815

83. Recruitment of minor workers for defense against a specialized parasite of Atta leaf-cutting ant fungus gardens

Author:
A.T. Gerstner; M. Poulsen; C.R. Currie
Source:
Ethology, ecology & evolution 2011 v.23 no.1 pp. 61-75
ISSN:
1828-7131
Subject:
fungus gardens; cultivars; parasites; weed control; spores; mycelium; leaf-cutting ants; social insects; social structure; gardens; Atta cephalotes; pathogens; fungi
Abstract:
... Social insects that obligately depend on mutualists are known to defend both themselves and their partners from exploitation. One example is leaf-cutting ants, which defend the mutualistic fungus they cultivate for food from potentially virulent specialized microfungal parasites (genus Escovopsis). Mechanisms employed by the ants to reduce the impact of Escovopsis include grooming the mycelium of ...
DOI:
10.1080/03949370.2010.529828

84. Resisting Antimicrobial Resistance: Lessons from Fungus Farming Ants

Author:
Ayush Pathak; Steve Kett; Massimiliano Marvasi
Source:
Trends in ecology & evolution 2019 v.34 no.11 pp. 974-976
ISSN:
0169-5347
Subject:
Formicidae; anti-infective agents; antibiotic resistance; bacteria; fungus gardening; fungus gardens; parasites
Abstract:
... Attine ants use antimicrobials produced by commensal bacteria to inhibit parasites on their fungal gardens. However, in this agricultural system, antimicrobial use does not lead to overwhelming resistance, as is typical in clinical settings. Mixtures of continually evolving antimicrobial variants could support these dynamics. ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.tree.2019.08.007

85. Sex allocation in the polydomous leaf-cutting ant Acromyrmex balzani

Author:
Ichinose, Katsuya; Forti, Luis C.; Pretto, Denis R.; Nachman, Gösta; Boomsma, Jacobus J.
Source:
Ecological research 2007 v.22 no.2 pp. 288-295
ISSN:
0912-3814
Subject:
Acromyrmex; adults; females; foraging; fungus gardens; leaf-cutting ants; males; pastures; regression analysis; sex allocation; Brazil
Abstract:
... Logistic regression analysis was used to analyse sex allocation in a population of the leaf-cutting ant Acromyrmex balzani occurring in a pasture in southern Brazil. The field sample consisted of 151 fungus-garden chambers (18 queenright and 133 queenless), belonging to 50 nests with three vertically stacked chambers per nest on average. Taking nest chamber as the unit of analysis, seven predictor ...
DOI:
10.1007/s11284-006-0063-3

86. Social Organization and Subcaste Specialization in the Leaf-Cutting Ant Acromyrmex subterraneus (Formicidae: Myrmicinae)

Author:
Ana C. Calheiros; Mariane U. V. Ronque; Paulo S. Oliveira
Source:
Journal of insect behavior 2019 v.32 no.4-6 pp. 267-280
ISSN:
0892-7553
Subject:
Acromyrmex subterraneus; Atta; ant colonies; brood rearing; cerrado; foraging; fungus gardening; fungus gardens; insect castes; labor; leaf-cutting ants; leaves; polyethism; savannas; social structure
Abstract:
... Several worker subcastes may occur in ant colonies, including physiological, morphological, and temporal subcastes. Leaf-cutting ants present intricate division of labor among worker subcastes during brood care, fungus garden maintenance, substrate foraging and processing. For colony survival, the fungus garden must be healthy, and tasks efficiently shared among worker subcastes. Therefore, worker ...
DOI:
10.1007/s10905-019-09729-6

87. Social interactions between fungus garden and external workers of Atta sexdens (Linnaeus) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Author:
F. G. Lacerda; T. M. C. Della Lucia; O. Desouza; O. L. Pereira; M. C. M. Kasuya; L. M. De Souza; J. C. Couceiro; D. J. De Souza
Source:
Italian journal of zoology 2014 v.81 no.2 pp. 298-303
ISSN:
1748-5851
Subject:
Atta sexdens; Trichoderma; aggression; antagonists; avoidance behavior; fungi; fungus gardens; gardens; grooming (animal behavior); leaf-cutting ants; mortality; pathogens; risk; social insects; spores; wastes; weeds
Abstract:
... Social insects can live in densely populated colonies where mortality risks are increased by inter-individual transmission of pathogens. Thus, diverse strategies are employed against such infection risks, including the display of sophisticated behavioural traits. Considering that the waste of the leaf-cutting ant contains pathogens, worker ants that tend the fungus garden – here called fungus gard ...
DOI:
10.1080/11250003.2014.911369

88. Soil actinobacteria inhibit antagonistic fungi of leafcutter ant colonies

Author:
Mariela O. do Nascimento; Amanda C. Teles Tenório; Renato A. Sarmento; Rita de Cássia C. Melo; Terezinha Maria Castro Della Lucia; Karina Dias Amaral; Danival J. de Souza
Source:
Journal of basic microbiology 2022 v.62 no.1 pp. 63-73
ISSN:
0233-111X
Subject:
Atta sexdens; Kitasatospora; Nocardia; Streptomyces; antibiotics; energy costs; fungi; fungus gardens; genes; leaf-cutting ants; metabolites; mortality; risk factors; soil; symbiosis
Abstract:
... Founder females of the leaf‐cutting ant species Atta sexdens experience high mortality during the founding and establishment of their colonies. The foundation site is crucial for the success of a new colony. In this study, we isolated and identified actinobacteria from fungus garden chambers of A. sexdens colony growth in soils from (1) forested areas without leafcutter ant nests and (2) open grou ...
DOI:
10.1002/jobm.202100476

89. Specialized Fungal Parasites and Opportunistic Fungi in Gardens of Attine Ants

Author:
Pagnocca Fernando C.; Masiulionis Virginia E.; Rodrigues Andre; São Paulo Research Foundation; Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico; Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior
Source:
Psyche 2012 v.2012 pp. -
ISSN:
0033-2615
Subject:
Formicidae; coevolution; cultivars; fungi; fungus gardens; gardens; mutualism; parasites
Abstract:
... Ants in the tribe Attini (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) comprise about 230 described species that share the same characteristic: all coevolved in an ancient mutualism with basidiomycetous fungi cultivated for food. In this paper we focused on fungi other than the mutualistic cultivar and their roles in the attine ant symbiosis. Specialized fungal parasites in the genus Escovopsis negatively impact the ...
DOI:
10.1155/2012/905109

90. Studies of Ambrosia Beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in Their Native Ranges Help Predict Invasion Impact

Author:
Jiri Hulcr; Adam Black; Kirsten Prior; Chi-Yu Chen; Hou-Feng Li
Source:
Florida entomologist 2017 v.100 no.2 pp. 257-261
ISSN:
1938-5102
Subject:
Curculionidae; Euwallacea fornicatus; Pityophthorus juglandis; Platypus quercivorus; Xyleborus glabratus; ambrosia beetles; dead wood; fungi; fungus gardens; habitats; hosts; pathogens; pests; screening; tissues; trees
Abstract:
... Ambrosia beetles frequently invade non-native regions but are typically of no concern because most species live in dead trees and culture nonpathogenic symbiotic fungal gardens. Recently, however, several ambrosia beetle—fungus complexes have invaded non-native regions and killed large numbers of host trees. Such tree-killing invasions have occurred unexpectedly, and the mechanism of the ecologica ...
DOI:
10.1653/024.100.0219

91. Symbiont Interactions in a Tripartite Mutualism: Exploring the Presence and Impact of Antagonism between Two Fungus-Growing Ant Mutualists

Author:
Poulsen, Michael; Currie, Cameron R.
Source:
PloS one 2010 v.5 no.1 pp. -
ISSN:
1932-6203
Subject:
antibacterial properties; Pseudonocardia; tritrophic interactions; antifungal properties; Acromyrmex; insect cuticle; microbial growth; mutualism; fungi
Abstract:
... Mutualistic associations are shaped by the interplay of cooperation and conflict among the partners involved, and it is becoming increasingly clear that within many mutualisms multiple partners simultaneously engage in beneficial interactions. Consequently, a more complete understanding of the dynamics within multipartite mutualism communities is essential for understanding the origin, specificity ...
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0008748
PubMed:
20090958
PubMed Central:
PMC2806923

92. Symbiont demand guides resource supply: leaf-cutting ants preferentially deliver their harvested fragments to undernourished fungus gardens

Author:
Daniela Römer; Gonzalo Pacheco Aguilar; Annika Meyer; Flavio Roces
Source:
Naturwissenschaften 2022 v.109 no.3 pp. 25
ISSN:
0028-1042
Subject:
Acromyrmex; Neotropics; fungi; fungus gardens; leaves; malnutrition; symbionts
Abstract:
... Leaf-cutting ants are highly successful herbivores in the Neotropics. They forage large amounts of fresh plant material to nourish a symbiotic fungus that sustains the colony. It is unknown how workers organize the intra-nest distribution of resources, and whether they respond to increasing demands in some fungus gardens by adjusting the amount of delivered resources accordingly. In laboratory exp ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00114-022-01797-7

93. Symbiont selection via alcohol benefits fungus farming by ambrosia beetles

Author:
Christopher M. Ranger; Peter W. Biedermann; Vipaporn Phuntumart; G. U. Beligala; S. Ghosh; D. E. Palmquist; R. Mueller; J. Barnett; P. B. Schultz; M. E. Reding; J. P. Benz
Source:
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2018 v.115 no. pp. 4447-4452
ISSN:
1091-6490
Subject:
Ambrosiella; Aspergillus; Penicillium; Raffaelea; Xylosandrus germanus; alcohol dehydrogenase; biomass; enzyme activity; ethanol; food availability; fungus gardening; fungus gardens; habitats; irrigation; progeny; symbionts; trees
Abstract:
... Animal-microbe mutualisms are typically maintained by vertical symbiont transmission or partner choice. A third mechanism, screening of high-quality symbionts, has been predicted in theory, but empirical examples are rare. Here we demonstrate that ambrosia beetles rely on ethanol within host trees for promoting gardens of their fungal symbiont and producing offspring. Ethanol has long been known a ...
Handle:
10113/6829324
DOI:
10.1073/pnas.1716852115
PubMed:
29632193
PubMed Central:
PMC5924889
CHORUS:
10.1073/pnas.1716852115

94. Symbiont-Mediated Host-Parasite Dynamics in a Fungus-Gardening Ant

Author:
Katrin Kellner; M. R. Kardish; J. N. Seal; T. A. Linksvayer; U. G. Mueller
Source:
Microbial ecology 2018 v.76 no.2 pp. 530-543
ISSN:
0095-3628
Subject:
Mycocepurus smithii; coevolution; cultivars; disease control; farmers; fungi; fungus gardening; fungus gardens; gardens; genotype; laboratory experimentation; pathogens
Abstract:
... Group-living can promote the evolution of adaptive strategies to prevent and control disease. Fungus-gardening ants must cope with two sets of pathogens, those that afflict the ants themselves and those of their symbiotic fungal gardens. While much research has demonstrated the impact of specialized fungal pathogens that infect ant fungus gardens, most of these studies focused on the so-called hig ...
DOI:
10.1007/s00248-017-1124-6

95. Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation in the Fungus Gardens of Leaf-Cutter Ants

Author:
Pinto-Tomás, Adrián A.; Anderson, Mark A.; Suen, Garret; Stevenson, David M.; Chu, Fiona S.T.; Cleland, W. Wallace; Weimer, Paul J.; Currie, Cameron R.
Source:
Science 2009 v.326 no.5956 pp. 1120-1123
ISSN:
0036-8075
Subject:
acetylene reduction; ant colonies; biomass; fungi; fungus gardens; leaf-cutting ants; nitrogen; nitrogen fixation; nitrogen-fixing bacteria; stable isotopes; symbiosis; terrestrial ecosystems; tropics; Argentina; Costa Rica; Panama
Abstract:
... Bacteria-mediated acquisition of atmospheric N₂ serves as a critical source of nitrogen in terrestrial ecosystems. Here we reveal that symbiotic nitrogen fixation facilitates the cultivation of specialized fungal crops by leaf-cutter ants. By using acetylene reduction and stable isotope experiments, we demonstrated that N₂ fixation occurred in the fungus gardens of eight leaf-cutter ant species an ...
DOI:
10.1126/science.1173036

96. Symbiotic bacteria on the cuticle of the leaf-cutting ant Acromyrmex subterraneus subterraneus protect workers from attack by entomopathogenic fungi

Author:
Thalles C. Mattoso; Denise D. O. Moreira; Richard I. Samuels
Source:
Biology letters 2012 v.8 no.3 pp. 461-464
ISSN:
1744-9561
Subject:
Acromyrmex; Actinobacteria; Metarhizium anisopliae; antibiotics; bacteria; disease resistance; entomopathogenic fungi; fungus gardens; host-pathogen relationships; insect cuticle; leaf-cutting ants; microsymbionts; symbiosis; worker insects
Abstract:
... Although only discovered in 1999, the symbiotic filamentous actinobacteria present on the integument of certain species of leaf-cutting ants have been the subject of intense research. These bacteria have been shown to specifically suppress fungal garden parasites by secretion of antibiotics. However, more recently, a wider role for these bacteria has been suggested from research revealing their ge ...
DOI:
10.1098/rsbl.2011.0963
PubMed:
22130174
PubMed Central:
PMC3367728

97. THE evolution of agriculture in insects

Author:
Mueller, U.G.; Gerardo, N.M.; Aanen, D.K.; Six, D.L.; Schultz, T.R.
Source:
Annual review of ecology, evolution, and systematics 2005 v.36 pp. 563-595
ISSN:
1543-592X
Subject:
insect behavior; evolution; mutualism; insects; fungi
DOI:
10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.36.102003.152626

98. Termites and necrophagous insects associated with early Pleistocene (Gelasian) Australopithecus sediba at Malapa, South Africa

Author:
Lucinda Backwell; Jean-Bernard Huchet; Tea Jashashvili; Paul H.G.M. Dirks; Lee R. Berger
Source:
Palaeogeography, palaeoclimatology, palaeoecology 2020 v.560 pp. 109989
ISSN:
0031-0182
Subject:
Calliphoridae; Pleistocene epoch; cadaver; fauna; fossils; fungus gardens; invertebrates; juveniles; males; oviposition; palaeogeography; paleoclimatology; paleoecology; puparium; skull; solar radiation; South Africa
Abstract:
... This study focuses on two early Pleistocene Australopithecus sediba hominin specimens and associated fauna from Malapa, South Africa. These specimens have been interpreted as having fallen through a shaft opening into a cave, where they died and likely mummified, before being washed into a lower chamber. In order to better understand the taphonomy of the fossils and to identify the invertebrate ag ...
DOI:
10.1016/j.palaeo.2020.109989

99. Termitotrox cupido sp. n. (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae), a new termitophilous scarab species from the Indo-Chinese subregion, associated with Hypotermes termites

Author:
Munetoshi Maruyama
Source:
ZooKeys 2012 v.254 pp. 89-97
ISSN:
1313-2970
Subject:
Scarabaeidae; Termitidae; elytra; fungus gardens; new species; trichomes; Cambodia
Abstract:
... Termitotrox cupido sp. n. is described from Cambodia and represents the first discovery of Termitotrox Reichensperger, 1915 from the Indo-Chinese subregion of the Oriental region. The type series was collected from fungus garden cells of Hypotermes makhamensis Ahmad, 1965 (Isoptera, Termitidae, Macrotermitinae). Hypotermes Holmgren, 1917 was previously an unknown host of Termitotrox species. The n ...
DOI:
10.3897/zookeys.254.4285

100. Termitotrox venus sp. n. (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae), a new blind, flightless termitophilous scarab from Cambodia

Author:
Showtaro Kakizoe; Munetoshi Maruyama
Source:
ZooKeys 2015 v.513 pp. 13-21
ISSN:
1313-2970
Subject:
Macrotermes; Scarabaeidae; body size; elytra; fungus gardens; mouthparts; new species; solid wastes; trichomes; Cambodia
Abstract:
... Termitotrox venus sp. n. is described from Cambodia and represents the second discovery of Termitotrox Reichensperger, 1915 from the Indo-Chinese subregion of the Indomalayan region. Most of the type series was collected from refuse dumps in fungus garden cells of Macrotermescf.gilvus (Hagen, 1858). Macrotermes Holmgren, 1910 was previously an unknown host of Termitotrox species. The new species i ...
DOI:
10.3897/zookeys.513.9958