In the world there are a huge number of insects. The leaf cutter ant, whose photo you will find in this article, is interesting for its lifestyle and appearance. Its name speaks for itself. It immediately becomes clear what his brothers are doing. But why do they need to cut leaves?
Common insects
These ants live in Central and South America. Their appearance is noteworthy in that on the face there is a pair of large and strong jaws. They are hard and sharp, slightly bent inward. On the inner edge, they have several notches. These gadgets help leaf cutter nibble tropical foliage. The head of this insect is large. It should be so. Indeed, on a small head it would be difficult to keep the massive jaws. The size of leaf cutting ants is not very large. In length, they reach 5-20 millimeters. Their body color is brown. The uterus is distinguished by its size. They are large, with a wide, developed chest. In the lower part of the head of the uterus of the leaf-cutting ant is a special pocket. Before mating, she grows wings, and after him gnaws them off herself.
original name
In order to have a good idea of the process of creating a new colony of ants, we must return to why leaf-cutting ants got this name. Watching these insects, people concluded that they feed on plants. This is due to the fact that the leaf-cutting ant, common in America, destroys the leaves of plants. If the colony got down to business, then in a short period of time only branches and trunk will remain from the tree. What do they do with the leaves? Are eating? This assumption turned out to be wrong. Yes, indeed, leaf-cutting ants, the description of which you will find in this article, chew on leaves, but not to eat.
Own garden
The process of destroying foliage is very interesting for them. Some individuals cut the leaf from the stalk, then other ants come to it, specializing in gnawing small pieces and dragging them into the house. Separate rooms of his anthill are reserved for mushroom cultivation. And the leaves serve as a breeding ground. To make mushrooms grow better, these insects use special fertilizers - their excrement, which they put on each leaf. But ants do not just eat mushrooms. They make sure that they do not grow too large and regularly cut them. Then in the place of the incision drops form, which serve as their food. Ants lick off these drops, and their saliva, which contains a large number of antibiotics, destroys harmful fungi and bacteria that can damage their mycelium. To feed the entire colony, these insects can grow about 100 mushrooms. And one weighs about 500 grams.
Females are more important
Leaf cutter ant, whose lifestyle is certainly interesting, also reproduces in an original way. In order to grow insects capable of breeding, special individuals feed the larvae, adding special substances that stimulate sexual development to their food. Females and males that grow from these larvae mate with each other. Moreover, the female needs a large amount of sperm, so she mates with several males. After mating, which lasts only one day, the males die.
Own house
The construction of a new family begins with the departure of the female. She flies away not with empty paws, or rather, jaws. In her special pocket, she carries a piece of mycelium to settle in a new place and begin to arrange new plantings. Having found a suitable place, the female digs a passage under the ground. There she makes a hole in which she plants the mycelium. Nearby she lays eggs. Initially, she takes care of the children and the "garden" herself. Moreover, the female eats her eggs and partially born young animals. Over time, the ants grow up and begin to monitor the mushrooms themselves. Then the uterus retires. There should be one uterus in one anthill. If it dies, then the working individuals begin to take care of the eggs.
Grow exactly
When you see the larva of a leaf-cutting ant, which you have already met with a description, you will never say that a strong ant will grow out of it. She looks like a little white worm. She has no eyes, no limbs, and without special care she will die. Moreover, for proper growth and development, it is necessary to monitor not only to properly feed the larvae, but also the conditions in which they are found. Temperature and humidity should be maintained at a certain level. Ants feed their larvae with their own eggs, gradually transferring to mushrooms. Interestingly, males grow out of unfertilized eggs. Of the fertilized - females, which eventually become working individuals or uterus.
So live
Scientists have studied what ants look like. It even became known why they are building it underground, and not on trees, closer to the leaves that they need so much. The fact is that in the depths of the soil there are almost no temperature differences that can be dangerous for growing mushrooms. Also in such conditions, the mycelium is protected from high humidity, destructive effect on it. To understand how the house of leaf-cutting ants is arranged, you need to imagine a giant egg in a section. The safest place is in the center. It is there that the camera in which the uterus lives is located. This camera is surrounded by special children's "rooms." It is in them that larvae are grown from eggs. Mushrooms are grown in external chambers. Interestingly, some leaf-cutting ants clean their homes and take out the trash outside. Others put it in special garbage "rooms".
Activities for everyone
Interestingly, different individuals have different functions in ants. Among them there are those who care for the uterus, for the house, for the farm. Others guard the anthill, extract leaves. Moreover, even in size, these insects vary. The smallest are working ants. The largest is the uterus. It weighs 700 times the size of a small individual. But not every colony has soldiers. Only the largest and most powerful has security. Interesting insects leaf-cutting ants. "What are they needed for?" - someone will be interested.
Difficult pests
At first glance, it seems that these insects do one harm. Indeed, if there are too many of them, perhaps they can eat the whole forest. That is, over time they will turn our planet into a desert. However, this does not happen. Apparently, nature itself maintains a certain balance. Indeed, leaf-cutting ants have natural enemies that prevent them from spreading very much. People also struggle with these insects, preventing them from approaching cultural plantings. To do this, destroy their nests with the help of chemical agents, and also arrange metal, plastic or water barriers around the trees. Under natural conditions, the underground activity of leaf-cutting ants even contributes to the enrichment of soil layers and accelerate the metabolic processes of the ecosystem. In addition, leaf-cutting ants themselves have become food for humans. Fried insects have long been eaten in South America and other countries.
Nowadays, what kind of pets do not contain! In some people these are leaf-cutting ants. Of course, they do not live on the garden plot, but in special insectariums in which special conditions of detention are created. It is interesting to observe these insects, but still they must live in a natural habitat. If you are not going to go to South America in the near future, then leaf-cutting ants can be seen at the Moscow Zoo.