''Atta'' is a
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...
of
New World
The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. ...
ants of the
subfamily
In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classifica ...
Myrmicinae
Myrmicinae is a subfamily of ants, with about 140 extant genera; their distribution is cosmopolitan. The pupae lack cocoons. Some species retain a functional sting. The petioles of Myrmicinae consist of two nodes. The nests are permanent and ...
. It contains at least 17 known species.
''Atta'' leaf-cutter ants are relatively large, rusty red or brown in colour, and have a spiny body and long legs. The three main castes within a nest are the queen, worker, and soldier.
Only the queens and males have wings (alate), 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 long.
Overview
Ants of the genus ''Atta'' are
leafcutter ants
Leafcutter ants, a non-generic name, are any of 47 species of leaf-chewing ants belonging to the two genera '' Atta'' and ''Acromyrmex''.
These species of tropical, fungus-growing ants are all endemic to South and Central America, Mexico, and pa ...
that comprise one of the two genera of leafcutting ants within the
tribe
The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to confl ...
Attini, along with ''
Acromyrmex
''Acromyrmex'' is a genus of New World ants of the subfamily Myrmicinae. This genus is found in South America and parts of Central America and the Caribbean Islands, and contains 33 known species.
Commonly known as "leafcutter ants" they compris ...
''. They have no sting, thus inject no venom, although they are known as strong biters.
''Atta'' spp. exhibit 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). Their immature development undergoes four larval stages, regardless of the ultimate caste, wherein larvae are also associated with fungal hyphae.
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
A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ...
while 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.
The minims behaving this way demonstrates the highly derived character of the species.
Like ''Acromyrmex'', ''Atta'' spp. subsist mostly on a particular species of
fungus
A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the 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, separately fr ...
that they cultivate on a medium of masticated leaf tissue. This is the sole food of the
queen
Queen or QUEEN may refer to:
Monarchy
* Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom
** List of queens regnant
* Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king
* Queen dowager, the widow of a king
* Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...
and other
colony
In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state' ...
members that remain in the nest. The media workers also gain subsistence from plant sap they ingest while physically cutting out sections of leaf from a variety of plants.
Before leaving their parent colonies, winged females carry a small section of fungus in their intrabuccal pocket, and with this, the subsequently wingless queens seed the fungus gardens of incipient colonies. The queen does not eat from the fungus initially; she gives it time to grow by fertilizing it with her fecal matter. She survives on her fat body reserves, eating 90% of the eggs she lays, and catabolizing her wing muscles.
Swanson et al 2019 finds annual turnover of ''Atta'' nest sites to be between 1127%.
''Atta'' spp. have 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. This does not diminish the huge quantities of foliage they harvest; ''Atta'' is estimated to be 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 farming activity.
Workers of the genus have few cuticular bacteria.
Evolution
The leafcutter ants (''Atta'' and ''
Acromyrmex
''Acromyrmex'' is a genus of New World ants of the subfamily Myrmicinae. This genus is found in South America and parts of Central America and the Caribbean Islands, and contains 33 known species.
Commonly known as "leafcutter ants" they compris ...
'') are different from other ants by their underground fungi cultivation; the two genera split off from a common ancestor species about 10 million years ago (Mya). The ''
Trachymyrmex
''Trachymyrmex '' is a genus of fungus-growing ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae. The genus is mainly tropical in distribution, with most species being found in Central and South America.
The queens of the species appear to mate with only one ma ...
'' group and ''
Sericomyrmex'' are the closest relatives to the leafcutters; they split off about 17 Mya.
Leafcutter ants are very specialized organisms in that they coevolved with another organism through symbiosis. This process took millions of years to occur, about 50 Mya, which is when these ants began their relationship with fungi.
The fungus eventually lost the ability to produce spores and the ants capitalized on that by making the fungus its main food source. About 66 Mya, South America was isolated from other land masses, and this is when gardening ants started their relationship with a fungus.
Leafcutter ants are thought to have propagated the same fungal lineage for 25 million years, which means they caused the fungus to reproduce.
Ecological effects
Leafcutter ants can create bottom-up gaps by forming their large nests. The ants excavate soil rich in organic matter, and store additional organic matter in their underground chambers. This creates rich soils that promote plant growth. The ants can also trim the leaves of plants in the understory, allowing for more light to hit the forest floor. They can also control the types of trees and other plants by selectively bringing seeds into the underground chambers. Depending on the location of the chamber, a seed can grow by reaching light.
Species
*''
Atta bisphaerica''
Forel, 1908
*''
Atta capiguara''
Gonçalves, 1944
*''
Atta cephalotes
''Atta cephalotes'' is a species of leafcutter ant in the tribe Attini (the fungus-growing ants). 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. The colony comprises ...
''
(Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...
, 1758
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Swedish biologist Carl Linnaeus (Carl von Linné) publishes in Stockholm the first volume (''Animalia'') of the 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae'', the starting point of modern zoologi ...
)
*''
Atta colombica''
Guérin-Méneville, 1844
*''
Atta cubana''
Fontenla Rizo, 1995
*''
Atta goiana''
Gonçalves, 1942
*''
Atta insularis''
Guérin-Méneville, 1844
*''
Atta laevigata''
( F. Smith, 1858) (
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the ...
south to
Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to t ...
)
*''
Atta mexicana''
(Smith, 1858)
*''
Atta opaciceps
''Atta opaciceps'' is a species of leaf-cutter ant, a New World ant of the subfamily Myrmicinae of the genus ''Atta''.
See also
*List of leafcutter ants
This is a list of leafcutter ants, comprising 42 species from two genera: ''Atta (genus) ...
''
Borgmeier, 1939
*''
Atta pilosa''
(Buckley, 1866)
*''
Atta robusta
''Atta robusta'' is a species of leafcutter ant, a New World ant of the subfamily Myrmicinae of the genus ''Atta''.
See also
*List of leafcutter ants
This is a list of leafcutter ants, comprising 42 species from two genera: ''Atta (genus), ...
''
Borgmeier, 1939
*''
Atta saltensis
''Atta saltensis'' is a species of leafcutter ant, a New World ant of the subfamily Myrmicinae of the genus ''Atta''.
See also
*List of leafcutter ants
This is a list of leafcutter ants, comprising 42 species from two genera: ''Atta (genus) ...
''
Forel, 1913
*''
Atta sexdens''
(Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...
, 1758)
*''
Atta tardigrada''
(Buckley, 1866)
*''
Atta texana''
( Buckley, 1860) - Texas leafcutter ant (East
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
and western
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is bord ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
, northeastern
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
)
*''
Atta vollenweideri''
Forel, 1893
Uses
As food
''Atta'' species are a popular ingredient in
Mexican cuisine
Mexican cuisine consists of the cooking cuisines and traditions of the modern country of Mexico. Its earliest roots lie in Mesoamerican cuisine. Its ingredients and methods begin with the first agricultural communities such as the Olmec and ...
, particularly in the southern states such as
Chiapas
Chiapas (; Tzotzil and Tzeltal: ''Chyapas'' ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Chiapas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Chiapas), is one of the states that make up the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It comprises 124 municipalities ...
,
Guerrero
Guerrero is one of the 32 states that comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo and its largest city is Acapulcocopied from article, GuerreroAs of 2020, Guerrero the pop ...
,
Hidalgo,
Puebla
Puebla ( en, colony, settlement), officially Free and Sovereign State of Puebla ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its cap ...
,
Veracruz
Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...
, and
Oaxaca
Oaxaca ( , also , , from nci, Huāxyacac ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca), is one of the 32 states that compose the Federative Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 570 municipaliti ...
. It is considered a delicacy, as well as a food of high protein content, so is often served as a main dish, not as garnish, despite its small portions. They may be eaten as the sole filling in tacos. ''Atta'', the type of ant most eaten in Mexico, has a nutty flavor.
Also in
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, the queens of leafcutter ants (locally known as ''tanajuras'') are highly appreciated as delicacies in several regions.
The techniques involving their capture and cooking are considered an immaterial patrimony of the people of the
Tianguá municipality, in
Ceará
Ceará (, pronounced locally as or ) is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the northeastern part of the country, on the Atlantic coast. It is the eighth-largest Brazilian State by population and the 17th by area. It is also one of the ...
.
''Atta'' spp. are also eaten by the
Guanes tribe.
See also
*
List of leafcutter ants
This is a list of leafcutter ants, comprising 42 species from two genera: ''Atta'' and ''Acromyrmex
''Acromyrmex'' is a genus of New World ants of the subfamily Myrmicinae. This genus is found in South America and parts of Central America and t ...
References
External links
BBC archive video of ''Atta'' Leaf-cutter antsBristol Zoo factsheet
{{DEFAULTSORT:Atta (Genus)
Mexican cuisine
Ant genera
Taxa named by Johan Christian Fabricius