Leaf-cutter Ant
Mycocepurus smithii
20.6282, -87.0757
Field Notes
Description:
Photo take in my backyard ,many of this leaf-cutter ants develop wings during last night rain, this morning early i find this hundreds of this ants claiming a high tree and the ones whit wings fly from the top i have never seen this behavior???? This ants are mostly nocturnal some colonies can grow up to 7 millions or more, they can exfoliate at entire big tree in one night. About 1 cm long each.
Habitat:
Found from México to Argentina! Foundress queens shed their wings prior to colony excavation either near the site or just inside. They then excavate a tunnel to a depth of roughly 10 cm (4 in) and create a primary chamber. The dealate queen then carries the wings into the primary chamber and inserts them into the chamber ceiling where the surface of the wings is used as a platform for growing an incipient fungal garden.
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