Information AboutAnt-fungus Mutualism |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT ANT-FUNGUS MUTUALISM | |
| ants | |
| mycology | |
| symbiosis | |
| insect ecology | |
| SHOPPER'S DELIGHT | |
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GENERAL OVERVIEW This mutualism is thought to have originated in basin of the Amazon Rainforest some 50-65 million years ago. The Attine ant species actively grow the fungal cultivar, much like human farming. The ants provide defense for the fungal garden and help in propagation of the fungus material, and the fungus provide nutrient for the ants in specialized structures known as Gongyldia . Thus mutualism is made further complicated by the introduction of two new partners, a fungal parasite Escovopsis and a bacterial species residing on the ants' integuments and assist in defending from this parasite through the production of Secondary Metabolites . EXTERNAL LINKS |