In warm regions of the Americas, leafcutter ants farm the fungus that they eat, gathering bits of greenery to feed it. An entire ocean away, one species of ant in Africa uses a very similar fungus ...

For centuries we have believed that humans were unique in the ability to farm and cultivate food. However, it turns out that ants have been growing their own food well before humans ever planted a ...

Ph.D. student Juju Dessert will explore the fascinating world of leafcutter ants. These ants aren’t eating the leaves they carry—they use plant matter to cultivate a special fungus in their ...

We’re not the only animals that farm; ants do it too, cultivating vast quantities of fungus to feed their growing ...

Leafcutter ants of the American tropics exemplify animals that exhibit super-organism status, advanced social organization and symbiosis. As you walk through the jungle you become aware of these ...

Celebrate Thanksgiving with some of the animal kingdom’s greatest cooks, including marshmallow-roasting apes and salt-sprinkling monkeys Jack Tamisiea In the tropical forests of Central and South ...

Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent six days a week. Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Dinosaurs certainly didn’t benefit from the Chicxulub asteroid ...

The mutualistic relationship between leaf-cutting ants and their fungal cultivars, primarily Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, constitutes one of nature’s most intricate examples of symbiosis. This ...

The Butterfly Pavilion welcomed a new species of critter this month, and it’s already making itself at home. The new leafcutter ant exhibit showcases the lives of these invertebrates, who are known ...

Leafcutter ants of the American tropics exemplify animals that exhibit superorganism status, advanced social organization and symbiosis. As you walk through the jungle you become aware of these ...