| Full text | |
| Author(s): |
Mueller, Ulrich G.
[1]
;
Kardish, Melissa R.
[1, 2]
;
Ishak, Heather D.
[1, 3]
;
Wright, April M.
[4]
;
Solomon, Scott E.
[5, 6]
;
Bruschi, Sofia M.
[1, 7]
;
Carlson, Alexis L.
[1]
;
Bacci, Jr., Mauricio
[7]
Total Authors: 8
|
| Affiliation: | [1] Univ Texas Austin, Dept Integrat Biol, Austin, TX 78712 - USA
[2] Univ Calif Davis, Ctr Populat Biol, Davis, CA 95616 - USA
[3] Stanford Univ, Dept Med, Stanford, CA 94305 - USA
[4] Southeastern Louisiana Univ, Dept Biol Sci, Hammond, LA 70402 - USA
[5] Rice Univ, Dept Ecol & Evolutionary Biol, Houston, TX - USA
[6] Smithsonian Inst, Dept Entomol, NHB 169, Washington, DC 20560 - USA
[7] Univ Estadual Paulista, Ctr Estudos Insetos Sociais, Sao Paulo - Brazil
Total Affiliations: 7
|
| Document type: | Journal article |
| Source: | Molecular Ecology; v. 27, n. 10, p. 2414-2434, MAY 2018. |
| Web of Science Citations: | 13 |
| Abstract | |
To elucidate fungicultural specializations contributing to ecological dominance of leafcutter ants, we estimate the phylogeny of fungi cultivated by fungus-growing (attine) ants, including fungal cultivars from (i) the entire leafcutter range from southern South America to southern North America, (ii) all higher-attine ant lineages (leafcutting genera Atta, Acromyrmex; nonleafcutting genera Trachymyrmex, Sericomyrmex) and (iii) all lower-attine lineages. Higher-attine fungi form two clades, Clade-A fungi (Leucocoprinus gongylophorus, formerly Attamyces) previously thought to be cultivated only by leafcutter ants, and a sister clade, Clade-B fungi, previously thought to be cultivated only by Trachymyrmex and Sericomyrmex ants. Contradicting this traditional view, we find that (i) leafcutter ants are not specialized to cultivate only Clade-A fungi because some leafcutter species ranging across South America cultivate Clade-B fungi; (ii) Trachymyrmex ants are not specialized to cultivate only Clade-B fungi because some Trachymyrmex species cultivate Clade-A fungi and other Trachymyrmex species cultivate fungi known so far only from lower-attine ants; (iii) in some locations, single higher-attine ant species or closely related cryptic species cultivate both Clade-A and Clade-B fungi; and (iv) ant-fungus co-evolution among higher-attine mutualisms is therefore less specialized than previously thought. Sympatric leafcutter ants can be ecologically dominant when cultivating either Clade-A or Clade-B fungi, sustaining with either cultivar-type huge nests that command large foraging territories; conversely, sympatric Trachymyrmex ants cultivating either Clade-A or Clade-B fungi can be locally abundant without achieving the ecological dominance of leafcutter ants. Ecological dominance of leafcutter ants therefore does not depend primarily on specialized fungiculture of L. gongylophorus (Clade-A), but must derive from ant-fungus synergisms and unique ant adaptations. (AU) | |
| FAPESP's process: | 14/25507-3 - Substrate processing by Attini ants: dynamics and metabolic cooperation with microbes |
| Grantee: | Mauricio Bacci Junior |
| Support Opportunities: | Regular Research Grants |