Leaf-cutter Ants, Acromyrmex versicolor, are building their volcano-cone shaped structures now after the rains. Those are not new colonies, just new air chimneys for the ventilation of their subterranean fungus gardens. The ants cut leaves and carry them into their nests to feed the fungus. They depend on it as their only food source. The queen has started her first fungus garden even before she raised any workers. Old colonies can be huge, with many chambers and tens of thousands of inhabitants. We have another related Leaf Cutter Ant, Atta sp., in a few areas north of the Mexican border. South of the border you can find Atta species with much larger nests all the way into the tropics. Picture Rocks, Pima Co, AZ Sept. 2014
Posted on: Mon, 13 Oct 2014 02:37:54 +0000
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