High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Ant- fungus mutualism
is a symbiosis seen in certain ant and fungal species, where ants
actively cultivate fungus much like humans farm crops as a food
source. Interestingly, in some species, the ants and fungi are
dependent on each other for survival. The leafcutter ant is a well
known example of this symbiosis. A mutualism with fungi is also
noted in some species of termites in Africa. Given the exclusive
New World distribution of the 200 attine ant species, this
mutualism is thought to have originated in the basin of the Amazon
rainforest some 50 65 million years ago. The attine ants actively
propagate, nurture and defend the basidiomycete cultivar. In
return, the fungus provides nutrients for the ants, which may
accumulate in specialized hyphal-tips known as gongylidia.
