Atta
Encyclopedia
Atta is a genus
of New World
ant
s of the subfamily Myrmicinae
. It contains at least 16 known species.
Leaf-cutter ants are relatively large, rusty red or brown in colour, and have a spiny body and long legs. There are three main castes within a nest: the queen, worker and soldier. Only the queens have wings, and these ants are also known as 'reproductives' or 'swarmers'. Although most of the ants in the nest are female, only the queens produce eggs. Queens are usually over 20mm long.
Attini, along with Acromyrmex
.
Atta is one of the most spectacular of the attines, with colonies that can comprise in excess of one million individuals.
Atta exhibits a high degree of polymorphism
, with four castes being present in established colonies: minims (or 'garden ants'), minors, mediae, and majors (also called soldiers or dinergates).
The high degree of polymorphism in this genus is also suggestive of its high degree of advancement. Every caste has a specific function, and some remarkably advanced phenomena have been observed in Atta species. An example of such is the behaviour of the minim ants, which climb on the cut sections of leaf
whilst they are carried back to the nest by the media workers to protect the latter from a particular species of phorid fly that parasitises
the leaf-carrying caste. While hitchhiking, the minims also work to decontaminate the fragment before it arrives at the nest, and feed on the sap
of the leaf. That the minims behave in this way demonstrates the highly derived character of the species.
Like Acromyrmex, Atta subsists mostly on a particular species of fungus
which it cultivates on a medium of masticated leaf tissue. This is the sole food of the queen and other colony
members that remain in the nest. The media workers also gain subsistence from plant sap they ingest whilst physically cutting out sections of leaf from a variety of plants.
Before leaving their parent colonies, winged females take a small section of fungus into their bucchal pouches, and with this, the subsequently wingless queens 'seed' the fungus gardens of incipient colonies, cutting and collecting the first few sections of leaf themselves.
Atta has evolved to change food plants constantly, preventing a colony from completely stripping off leaves and thereby killing trees, thus avoiding negative biological feedback on account of their sheer numbers. However, this does not diminish the huge quantities of foliage they harvest; Atta is estimated for being responsible for the decomposition of 20% of all leaves in South America. Consequently, the genus is considered a major agricultural
pest species in areas where its range coincides with arable farming activity.
Males die after the mating flight. The queens then store the sperm acquired from the males in spermathecae, which they will use to found a new colony. Mortality for queens during mating is estimated to be as high as 52% (Wirth, et. al., 2003). Queens begin a new colony starting by excavation of a nest chamber 20-30cm below the surface, the cavity is about 6cm long. After excavating the cavity the queen begins a new fungus garden by spitting out a mycelial wad harvested from the fungus of her parent colony. By the third day the mycelia has started to grow new fungus and the queen has begun to lay eggs, usually between three and six. The queen and the first larva do not feed from the garden, rather they eat 90% of the eggs laid by queen. During this initial stage of nest development the queen is the sole cultivator of the new fungus garden. If she does not maintain the garden well the colony will not survive (Wirth, et. al., 2003).
·
The most common size group for foragers is from 2-2.2mm. These ants bring in foraged leaves and drop them on the floor of a nest chamber. Then a smaller size ant trims the leaves to a size of 1-2 mm across. Then an even smaller ant balls up the pieces of leaves in order to cultivate fungus on them. Finally the smallest ants plant the fungus on the leaves, tend the garden and remove any spores from other species of fungus (Wirth, et. al., 2003).
The defense of the colony is also divided. When threatened by something such as a large vertebrate animal the colony deploys its largest workers to defend the colony, however if defending against something such as other ants they deploy many smaller workers to repel the threat.In the Atta ants it is estimated that seven castes split up a total of 20-30 different tasks within the colony (Wirth, et. al., 2003).
The ants also harvest and grow bacteria of the genus Streptomyces that produce anti-biotics to help fight off unwanted fungus and parasites. (Currie, Scott, Summerbell, & Malloch, 1998). To grow these bacteria the ants must first harvest the leaves. To do this they use chemical as well as vibrational communication to uniformly dismember a branch of its leaves and return home with their harvest. While transporting the leaves, the mandibles of the workers are full and unable to be used for protection from predators. One of the most common and deadly predators to the leaf cutter ants is the parasitic phorid fly. The phorid fly will lay its eggs inside of an unexpecting ant while it is carrying its load back to the colony. The leave cutters evolved a look-out system where the smallest ants will ride on top of the leave being carried by the worker and keep watch for any phorid flies looking to parasitize on the workers.
When the leaves finally reach the nest, other individuals lick the waxy cuticle off the leaves and then chew it up into small pieces. Next they inoculate the leaves with a fecal cocktail of enzymes from their hindgut. This initiates the digestion of the newly chewed up leaves. The plant material will be transported to the garden where it will be used to grow fungus that the ants will feed on.
Leafcutter ants tend to dominate the ecosystems they inhabit. Some grassland Atta species colonies consume as much vegetation per hectare as domestic cattle. Certain rainforest species are estimated to cause up to 80% of all leaf damage and to consume up to 17% of all leaf production. Generally, Atta species are non-generalists and have been shown utilizing between 50 and 75% of all neotropic rainforest plant species.
's 1998 film A Bug's Life
, the colony's princess is named Atta.
, Guerrero
, Hidalgo
, Puebla
and Veracruz
. It is considered a delicacy as well as a food of high protein content, therefore it is often served as a main dish, not as garnish, despite it's small portions. They may be eaten as the sole filling in tacos. The Atta is the type of ant that is most eaten in Mexico. It has a nutty flavor.
Atta is also eaten by the Guanes
tribe.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of New World
New World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
ant
Ant
Ants are social insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from wasp-like ancestors in the mid-Cretaceous period between 110 and 130 million years ago and diversified after the rise of flowering plants. More than...
s of the subfamily Myrmicinae
Myrmicinae
Myrmicinae is a subfamily of ants. There are about 140 genera within the group, with the family being cosmopolitan. The pupae lack cocoons. Some species retain a functional sting. The petioles of Myrmicinae consist of two nodes...
. It contains at least 16 known species.
Leaf-cutter ants are relatively large, rusty red or brown in colour, and have a spiny body and long legs. There are three main castes within a nest: the queen, worker and soldier. Only the queens have wings, and these ants are also known as 'reproductives' or 'swarmers'. Although most of the ants in the nest are female, only the queens produce eggs. Queens are usually over 20mm long.
Overview
Ants of the genus Atta are leafcutter ants that comprise one of the two genera of leafcutting ants within the tribeTribe (biology)
In biology, a tribe is a taxonomic rank between family and genus. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes.Some examples include the tribes: Canini, Acalypheae, Hominini, Bombini, and Antidesmeae.-See also:* Biological classification* Rank...
Attini, along with Acromyrmex
Acromyrmex
Acromyrmex is a genus of New World ants of the subfamily Myrmicinae. It contains 31 known species.-Distribution:This genera is found in South America and parts of Central America and the Caribbean islands.-Overview:...
.
Atta is one of the most spectacular of the attines, with colonies that can comprise in excess of one million individuals.
Atta exhibits a high degree of polymorphism
Polymorphism (biology)
Polymorphism in biology occurs when two or more clearly different phenotypes exist in the same population of a species — in other words, the occurrence of more than one form or morph...
, with four castes being present in established colonies: minims (or 'garden ants'), minors, mediae, and majors (also called soldiers or dinergates).
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
whilst they are carried back to the nest by the media workers to protect the latter from a particular species of phorid fly that parasitises
Parasitism
Parasitism is a type of symbiotic relationship between organisms of different species where one organism, the parasite, benefits at the expense of the other, the host. Traditionally parasite referred to organisms with lifestages that needed more than one host . These are now called macroparasites...
the leaf-carrying caste. While hitchhiking, the minims also work to decontaminate the fragment before it arrives at the nest, and feed on the sap
Plant sap
Sap is a fluid transported in xylem cells or phloem sieve tube elements of a plant. It transports water and nutrients throughout the plant....
of the leaf. That the minims behave in this way demonstrates the highly derived character of the species.
Fungus
A fungus is a member of a large group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds , as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, Fungi, which is separate from plants, animals, and bacteria...
which it cultivates on a medium of masticated leaf tissue. This is the sole food of the queen and other colony
Ant colony
An ant colony is an underground lair where ants live, eat and mate. Colonies consist of a series of underground chambers, connected to each other and the surface of the earth by small tunnels. There are rooms for nurseries, food storage, and mating...
members that remain in the nest. The media workers also gain subsistence from plant sap they ingest whilst physically cutting out sections of leaf from a variety of plants.
Atta has evolved to change food plants constantly, preventing a colony from completely stripping off leaves and thereby killing trees, thus avoiding negative biological feedback on account of their sheer numbers. However, this does not diminish the huge quantities of foliage they harvest; Atta is estimated for being responsible for the decomposition of 20% of all leaves in South America. Consequently, the genus is considered a major agricultural
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
pest species in areas where its range coincides with arable farming activity.
Biology
The leafcutter ant is morphologically similar to all other hymenoptera with a body made up of three segments: the head, thorax, and abdomen (gastor). The thorax can be broken down into two major parts: the alitrunk which contains the legs and wings, and the petiole which is found directly anterior to the abdomen (Wilson, E. O.1980). Leafcutter Ants can range from 0.1 - 0.65 inches in size. On the head of the leafcutter ant is the antennae. Their antennae are usually fairly long and generally have 10 or more segments. The antennae are the main sensory organ of the insect. The other sensory organ is the eyes. Leafcutter ants have two kinds of eyes: the 1)compound, lateral eyes, two in number and placed on the sides of the head, and the 2)simple, median eyes, ocelli, or stemmata, of which there are three on the vertex. Both kinds are best developed in the males, less in the females and least in the workers, which often lack the stemmata altogether(Lofgren, C. S.1986). Atta ants have variable morphology in the sizes of their mouth parts and heads across different caste groups. The soldiers have the largest and strongest mandibles which they use for defense and chewing. In addition to this they also have the largest heads. In contrast the worker ants use their jaws for cutting plant material, including leaves and grass, for use to harvest fungus. Atta leafcutter ants have some of the most morphologically diverse workers of any ant. The smallest workers (the minims) mainly work in the nest, caring for the brood and tending the fungus garden. Medium-sized workers (medias) include foragers, who cut the leaves and bring them back to the nest for processing. The largest workers (majors) are usually associated with colony defense. Their suitability as defenders is readily apparent in their large heads, with impressive mandibles powered by large muscles. Their giant armored heads and sharp powerful mandibles are formidable weapons. Although they do little else, the soldiers are always ready to rush out of the nest when disturbed and aggressively defend the colony.Social organization
Atta ants are eusocial meaning they exhibit cooperative care for immature individuals, overlap of at least two generations in same society, existence of reproductive and non-reproductive individuals.Reproductives
Once a year a colony, consisting of one queen and many thousands of workers, produces reproductive individuals called alates and have a different morphology, including wings for flight. After these individuals leave the nest of the parent colony mating occurs high in the air with each female mating with between 3 to 8 males (Wirth, et. al., 2003). Colonies that are close together conduct nuptial flights at close to the same time, increasing outbreedingMales die after the mating flight. The queens then store the sperm acquired from the males in spermathecae, which they will use to found a new colony. Mortality for queens during mating is estimated to be as high as 52% (Wirth, et. al., 2003). Queens begin a new colony starting by excavation of a nest chamber 20-30cm below the surface, the cavity is about 6cm long. After excavating the cavity the queen begins a new fungus garden by spitting out a mycelial wad harvested from the fungus of her parent colony. By the third day the mycelia has started to grow new fungus and the queen has begun to lay eggs, usually between three and six. The queen and the first larva do not feed from the garden, rather they eat 90% of the eggs laid by queen. During this initial stage of nest development the queen is the sole cultivator of the new fungus garden. If she does not maintain the garden well the colony will not survive (Wirth, et. al., 2003).
·
Division of Labor
Head width is an important determining factor in the division of labor for atta ants. In a new colony head width sizes only vary from 0.8-1.6 mm. This is because workers who tend the gardens must have a head size of less than 1 mm, while 1.6 mm is the smallest head size that can facilitate cutting of average toughness vegetation. As a colony grows in size the queen begins producing individuals with a wider range of head sizes, from 0.7-5 mm. The older the colony becomes the higher frequency of larger individuals there (Wirth, et. al., 2003) .This variation in size allows the Atta ants to divide the labor into two main groups, : foragers and gardeners. The larger ants are foragers and the smaller ants gardeners.The most common size group for foragers is from 2-2.2mm. These ants bring in foraged leaves and drop them on the floor of a nest chamber. Then a smaller size ant trims the leaves to a size of 1-2 mm across. Then an even smaller ant balls up the pieces of leaves in order to cultivate fungus on them. Finally the smallest ants plant the fungus on the leaves, tend the garden and remove any spores from other species of fungus (Wirth, et. al., 2003).
The defense of the colony is also divided. When threatened by something such as a large vertebrate animal the colony deploys its largest workers to defend the colony, however if defending against something such as other ants they deploy many smaller workers to repel the threat.In the Atta ants it is estimated that seven castes split up a total of 20-30 different tasks within the colony (Wirth, et. al., 2003).
Diet
The ants of the Atta group monoculture fungus for food by removing competing fungus from their gardens. To do this they harvest many different types of plants and plant materials, including leaves, flowers, seed husks, and stems. They use this material as a substrate for the fungus to grow on.The ants also harvest and grow bacteria of the genus Streptomyces that produce anti-biotics to help fight off unwanted fungus and parasites. (Currie, Scott, Summerbell, & Malloch, 1998). To grow these bacteria the ants must first harvest the leaves. To do this they use chemical as well as vibrational communication to uniformly dismember a branch of its leaves and return home with their harvest. While transporting the leaves, the mandibles of the workers are full and unable to be used for protection from predators. One of the most common and deadly predators to the leaf cutter ants is the parasitic phorid fly. The phorid fly will lay its eggs inside of an unexpecting ant while it is carrying its load back to the colony. The leave cutters evolved a look-out system where the smallest ants will ride on top of the leave being carried by the worker and keep watch for any phorid flies looking to parasitize on the workers.
When the leaves finally reach the nest, other individuals lick the waxy cuticle off the leaves and then chew it up into small pieces. Next they inoculate the leaves with a fecal cocktail of enzymes from their hindgut. This initiates the digestion of the newly chewed up leaves. The plant material will be transported to the garden where it will be used to grow fungus that the ants will feed on.
Leafcutter ants tend to dominate the ecosystems they inhabit. Some grassland Atta species colonies consume as much vegetation per hectare as domestic cattle. Certain rainforest species are estimated to cause up to 80% of all leaf damage and to consume up to 17% of all leaf production. Generally, Atta species are non-generalists and have been shown utilizing between 50 and 75% of all neotropic rainforest plant species.
Mounds
An ant nest is used as a place to shelter the colony, for the queen to rear her brood, to store and cultivate fungi, and to exchange food among the workers. The location of the nest is crucial and is ideally situated for an optimal balance of protection and food abundance. Atta nests are below ground, can contain multiple chambers, and can be very complex. Usually the size of the nest is a good indicator of how old the colony is, and the size of the nests differs among species. Atta cephalotes nests are about 30m2 and, A. vollenweideri has an average nest size of 34.6 m2. , A. colombica has an average size that is much smaller which may be due to a small worker population and high nest relocation rate (R. Wirth, 2003). Amongst the Atta species, A. laevigata have nests that are the deepest and contain the most chambers (Lach, 2010). These nests can have between 1,100 and nearly 8,000 chambers, can be 7 meters deep, and foraging tunnels can extend as far as 70 meters (Moreira, 2004). The ants control the -climate within underground chambers by building them at certain soil-depths and near structures (e.g., rocks or mounds) that can collect heat. They can also add decaying plant material to the chambers to warm them. This is especially important in the brooding chambers because the developing ants need to be kept at optimal temperatures for growth. Atta dispose of waste from the fungus garden and other parts of the nest into special waste chambers. Usually older ants are responsible for this because they are generally less useful to the colony (Lach, 2010).Species
- Atta bisphaericaAtta bisphaericaAtta bisphaerica is a species of leaf-cutter ant, a New World ant of the subfamily Myrmicinae of the genus Atta. This species is from one of the two genera of advanced attines within the tribe Attini....
(Borgmeier, T., 1939) - Atta capiguaraAtta capiguaraAtta capiguara is a species of leaf-cutter ant, a New World ant of the subfamily Myrmicinae of the genus Atta. This species is from one of the two genera of advanced attines within the tribe Attini....
(Wild, A. L., 2007) - Atta cephalotesAtta cephalotesAtta cephalotes is one of 41 species of leafcutter ant. This species is part of the Attini tribe . A single colony of ants can contain up to 5 million members, and each colony has one queen that can live more than 15 years...
(Linnaeus, 1758) - Atta colombicaAtta colombicaAtta colombica is one of 41 species of leafcutter ant. This species is part of the Attini tribe .-Description:Workers of this species are maroon in colour, and are entirely matte, with no shiny spots.-Distribution:...
(Guérin-MénevilleFélix Édouard Guérin-MénevilleFélix Édouard Guérin-Méneville was a French entomologist.Guérin-Méneville changed his surname from Guérin in 1836. He was the author of the illustrated work Iconographie du Règne Animal de G. Cuvier 1829–1844, a complement to the work of Georges Cuvier and Pierre André Latreille, which lacked...
, 1844) - Atta cubana (Fontenla Rizo, 1995)
- Atta goiana (Gonçalves, 1942)
- Atta insularisAtta insularisAtta insularis is a species of leaf-cutter ant, a New World ant of the subfamily Myrmicinae of the genus Atta. This species is from one of the two genera of advanced attines within the tribe Attini....
(Guérin-Méneville, 1845) - Atta laevigataAtta laevigataAtta laevigata is one of about a dozen species of leafcutter ants in the genus Atta, found from Colombia south to Paraguay. This species is one of the largest leafcutter species, and can be recognized by the smooth and shining head of the largest workers in a colony...
(F. SmithFrederick Smith (entomologist)Frederick Smith was a British entomologist.Smith worked in the zoology department of the British Museum from 1849, specialising in the Hymenoptera. In 1875 he was promoted to Assistant Keeper of Zoology...
, 1858) (ColombiaColombiaColombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
south to ParaguayParaguayParaguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
) - Atta mexicanaAtta mexicanaAtta mexicana is a species of leaf-cutter ant, a New World ant of the subfamily Myrmicinae of the genus Atta. This species is from one of the two genera of advanced attines within the tribe Attini.-Description:...
(F. Smith, 1858) - Atta opacicepsAtta opacicepsAtta opaciceps is a species of leaf-cutter ant, a New World ant of the subfamily Myrmicinae of the genus Atta. This species is from one of the two genera of advanced attines within the tribe Attini....
(Borgmeier, 1939) - Atta robustaAtta robustaAtta robusta is a species of leaf-cutter ant, a New World ant of the subfamily Myrmicinae of the genus Atta. This species is from one of the two genera of advanced attines within the tribe Attini....
(Borgmeier, 1939) - Atta saltensisAtta saltensisAtta saltensis is a species of leaf-cutter ant, a New World ant of the subfamily Myrmicinae of the genus Atta. This species is from one of the two genera of advanced attines within the tribe Attini....
(Forel, 1913) - Atta sexdensAtta sexdensAtta sexdens is a species of leafcutter ant belonging to the tribe Attini. Atta species are native to the New World, from Southern United States to Northern Argentina in the South. They are absent from Chile. They cut leaves to provide a substrate for the fungus farms which are their principal...
(Linnaeus, 1758) - Atta texanaTexas leafcutter antAtta texana is a fungus-farming ant species of the genus Atta, found in Texas, Louisiana and northeastern states of Mexico. Common names include town ant, parasol ant, fungus ant, Texas leafcutter ant, cut ant, and night ant...
(BuckleySamuel Botsford BuckleySamuel Botsford Buckley was an American botanist, geologist, and naturalist. He graduated from Wesleyan University in 1836....
, 1860) - Texas leafcutter ant (eastern TexasTexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
and western LouisianaLouisianaLouisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
in the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, northeastern MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
) - Atta undet
- Atta vollenweideriAtta vollenweideriAtta vollenweideri, common name chaco leafcutter ant, is a species of leaf-cutter ant, a New World ant of the subfamily Myrmicinae of the genus Atta. This species is from one of the two genera of advanced attines within the tribe Attini.-External links:* * *...
(Forel, 1893)
In popular culture
In PixarPixar
Pixar Animation Studios, pronounced , is an American computer animation film studio based in Emeryville, California. The studio has earned 26 Academy Awards, seven Golden Globes, and three Grammy Awards, among many other awards and acknowledgments. Its films have made over $6.3 billion worldwide...
's 1998 film A Bug's Life
A Bug's Life
A Bug's Life is a 1998 American computer animated adventure comedy film produced by Pixar and released by Walt Disney Pictures in the United States on November 25, 1998. A Bug's Life was the second Disney·Pixar feature film after Toy Story, and the third American computer-animated film after Toy...
, the colony's princess is named Atta.
As food
Atta species are a popular ingredient in Mexican cuisine, particularly in the southern states such as ChiapasChiapas
Chiapas officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Chiapas is one of the 31 states that, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 118 municipalities and its capital city is Tuxtla Gutierrez. Other important cites in Chiapas include San Cristóbal de las...
, Guerrero
Guerrero
Guerrero officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Guerrero is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo....
, Hidalgo
Hidalgo
Hidalgo officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Hidalgo is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 84 municipalities and its capital city is Pachuca de Soto....
, Puebla
Puebla
Puebla officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 217 municipalities and its capital city is Puebla....
and Veracruz
Veracruz
Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave , is one of the 31 states that, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided in 212 municipalities and its capital city is...
. It is considered a delicacy as well as a food of high protein content, therefore it is often served as a main dish, not as garnish, despite it's small portions. They may be eaten as the sole filling in tacos. The Atta is the type of ant that is most eaten in Mexico. It has a nutty flavor.
Atta is also eaten by the Guanes
Guanes
The Guanes were a South American people that lived mainly in the area of Santander and north of Boyacá, both modern departments of Colombia. They were farmers cultivating cotton, pineapple and other crops, and skilled artisans working in cotton textiles....
tribe.
See also
- AcromyrmexAcromyrmexAcromyrmex is a genus of New World ants of the subfamily Myrmicinae. It contains 31 known species.-Distribution:This genera is found in South America and parts of Central America and the Caribbean islands.-Overview:...
, the other genus of leafcutter ants - List of leafcutter ants
- Atta sexdensAtta sexdensAtta sexdens is a species of leafcutter ant belonging to the tribe Attini. Atta species are native to the New World, from Southern United States to Northern Argentina in the South. They are absent from Chile. They cut leaves to provide a substrate for the fungus farms which are their principal...
- Atta texana
- List of ant genera (alphabetical)