People arenât the only agriculturalists. Leaf-cutter ants, for example, cultivate a fungus from the leaves they collect. The fungus requires the plant leaves the ants collect to grow, as a nutritional substrate, which the ants actively harvest to help maintain the fungal community.
A. Is this an example of a predator-prey, host-parasite, mutualistic, or sexual conflict co-evolution?
B. If it is an antagonistic relationship, how are the two species in conflict? If it is a mutualistic relationship, how do both species benefit?
C. Describe how the above example is representative of co-evolution
D. Imagine the ants find a new food source that is higher in quality and easier to acquire than the fungus. Hypothesize what you think might then happen to the antagonistic or mutualistic relationship described in part b.)
People arenât the only agriculturalists. Leaf-cutter ants, for example, cultivate a fungus from the leaves they collect. The fungus requires the plant leaves the ants collect to grow, as a nutritional substrate, which the ants actively harvest to help maintain the fungal community.
A. Is this an example of a predator-prey, host-parasite, mutualistic, or sexual conflict co-evolution?
B. If it is an antagonistic relationship, how are the two species in conflict? If it is a mutualistic relationship, how do both species benefit?
C. Describe how the above example is representative of co-evolution
D. Imagine the ants find a new food source that is higher in quality and easier to acquire than the fungus. Hypothesize what you think might then happen to the antagonistic or mutualistic relationship described in part b.)
