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20170048_0086

© Cyril FRESILLON/CRCA/CNRS Images

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20170048_0086

Fourmilière d’"Atta laevigata" établie au sein du champignon “Leucoagaricus gongylophoru“

Atta laevigata nest built inside the fungus Leucoagaricus gongylophorus. The "minor" ants take the sections of leaf brought by the workers to feed the fungus. They then cut them up into smaller pieces and use them to cultivate the fungus, building their nest by hollowing out chambers inside it, and using it to feed their larvae. Atta ants, also known as leafcutter ants, live in symbiosis with the fungus Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, which they feed and feed from in turn. This symbiosis is reproduced in the laboratory.

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