Jump to content

  • Chat
  •  
  •  

Welcome to Formiculture.com!

This is a website for anyone interested in Myrmecology and all aspects of finding, keeping, and studying ants. The site and forum are free to use. Register now to gain access to all of our features. Once registered and logged in, you will be able to create topics, post replies to existing threads, give reputation points to your fellow members, get your own private messenger, post status updates, manage your profile and so much more. If you already have an account, login here - otherwise create an account for free today!

Photo

Leaf-cutting, fungus-growing Crematogaster

crematogaster study

  • Please log in to reply
7 replies to this topic

#1 Offline UtahAnts - Posted March 15 2023 - 10:17 AM

UtahAnts

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 595 posts
  • LocationUtah Valley

*
POPULAR

This recent study investigates the interesting species Crematogaster clariventris which exhibits leaf cutting behavior. These ants use the leaves to grow fungus, however the fungus is not used as a source of food, but rather as a support for their carton nests.

 

ece39904-fig-0001-m.jpg

 

Image courtesey of Piotr Naskrecki


Edited by UtahAnts, March 15 2023 - 10:25 AM.

  • kellakk, ANTdrew, Manitobant and 12 others like this

Leave the Road, take the Trails - Pythagoras

 

Utah Ant Keeping --- Here

Formicariums and Outworlds --- Here

Photo Album --- Here

Videos --- Here


#2 Offline antsriondel - Posted March 15 2023 - 11:56 AM

antsriondel

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 913 posts
  • LocationRiondel British Columbia Canada.

Wow that is cool. :)



#3 Offline ANTdrew - Posted March 15 2023 - 11:57 AM

ANTdrew

    Advanced Member

  • Moderators
  • PipPipPip
  • 9,376 posts
  • LocationAlexandria, VA
New dream species! Look at those colors.
  • FinWins likes this
"The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer." Prov. 30:25
Keep ordinary ants in extraordinary ways.

#4 Offline Katakros8 - Posted March 15 2023 - 12:05 PM

Katakros8

    Member

  • Members
  • PipPip
  • 21 posts
  • LocationDenver USA
Wow absolutly beautiful ant!

#5 Offline mmcguffi - Posted March 15 2023 - 2:03 PM

mmcguffi

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 217 posts
  • LocationBay Area, CA

Microbiologist here (who also keeps Atta)

 

This is a super neat study! However, I think the title is a bit deceptive. Their (quite limited) analysis of the fungi does not show any particularly dominant members -- meaning their is likely no/limited co-evolution between the ants and the fungi making this a very different relationship than Attines. If I am being critical, they hand-wave away any fungi they did not expect to see, though provide no real evidence that these detected fungi are in fact just spore contaminants like they claim. Even if you charitably allow that assumption, they further show a fairly diverse mixture of species that are still involved. I see no evidence of "intentional" fungus growing in the paper.

 

My best interpretation of this data is that these ants make their nest cartons out of plant material and then native/random fungi use the plant material as a substrate. One of the most amazing things about Attines (imo) is the fact that the fungi are coevolved with the ants, making them a single organism of sorts. The relationship demonstrated in the paper seems to be opportunistic fungi colonizing plant material collected by ants.

 

Anyway, still very very cool, I would just have liked to see better data for some of the claims they are making here


  • UtahAnts, futurebird, AntsCali098 and 2 others like this

#6 Offline FinWins - Posted March 15 2023 - 3:13 PM

FinWins

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 466 posts
  • LocationUnited States

Maybe in 25 million years this will have turned from an accident into their main food source and they are the leaf cutting ants of the future!


  • mmcguffi and cutchins like this

I keep: C. modoc, C. sansabeanus  :D, C. maritimus, Formica argentea, M. mexicanus  :D, Odontomachus brunneus :D, Pogonomyrmex californicus, Pogonomyrmex rugosus, 

 


#7 Offline mmcguffi - Posted March 15 2023 - 4:58 PM

mmcguffi

    Advanced Member

  • Members
  • PipPipPip
  • 217 posts
  • LocationBay Area, CA

Maybe in 25 million years this will have turned from an accident into their main food source and they are the leaf cutting ants of the future!

 

That's basically what people think happened with Attines!


  • FinWins likes this

#8 Offline cutchins - Posted March 23 2024 - 3:39 AM

cutchins

    Member

  • Members
  • PipPip
  • 27 posts
  • LocationBrownsville, TX

Hey mmcguffi, (or anyone that knows the answer), in the linked study they refer to the fungus of the higher attines by the division and family names, Basidiomycota Agaricaceae, instead of the binomial name, L. gongylophorus. Why is that?

 

It confused the hell out of me because, as a layman, I'm a little familiar with the binomial name and when I saw something else I was like, "wtf, am I an idiot or going insane? because that's not what I thought the fungus was called". 


  • futurebird likes this





Also tagged with one or more of these keywords: crematogaster, study

0 user(s) are reading this topic

0 members, 0 guests, 0 anonymous users