Class: Insecta

Order: Hymenoptera

Scientific Name: Atta cephalotes

Range: Louisiana south to Argentina

Habitat: Forests and Rainforests

Diet: Wild: Fungus spores endemic only to leaf-cutting ants' nests
Zoo: Same as above

Description: Description: Approximately 1/2-inch long. Colonies of up to several million ants are found, each established by a single female queen. Each ant in the colony has a designated role. The ants live about 10 to 20 feet below ground in large cavities and tunnels, which they create themselves by carrying the dirt back to the surface. They smooth the walls and moisten them with saliva to harden them against cave-ins. Leaf-cutting ants are a unique species of ant. They are unable to directly digest the leaves that they cut, so they have evolved into remarkable fungus farmers. This fungus is found nowhere else in the world, and the fungus is the only food for the ants. In order for this fungus to decompose leaves, it needs enzymes from fecal secretions of the worker ants. It is a true mutual symbiosis, since the ants and fungus depend solely on each other to survive.

Our Animals: Cleveland Metroparks Zoo's leaf cutter ants are currently off-exhibit. A new exhibit is planned for 2010. Please stay tuned to the Zoo's website for updates.