Nature is more complex than we know
Most people think of plants at the bottom of the food chain. With a few exceptions like the Venus Flytrap and the Pitcher plant, most plants end up as food sources for other members of the animal kingdom.
There is a strange plant called the Acacia tree. It gets ants to work for it. The acacia ant defends the tree against any pest that attacks it. The pest can be several times larger than the ant and it will still be attacked when it is feeding on the Acacia tree. Most people may assume that the acacia ants are just extremely territorial. The next factoid will eliminate such belief. Any vines that try to creep on the Acacia Tree to compete for sunlight gets the offending part trimmed off. The ants just chomp off the vine and lets the plant material fall to the ground. The ants also provide weeding services by attacking any seedlings near the tree.
Of course the acacia ants do have a few benefits by protecting the tree. The tree provides Beltian bodies (Detachable nodules that are protein, lipid and sugar rich) for food for the ants. It also provides nectar that ants use to feed their young. The ants live in the hollow thorns of the Acacia tree. This is something unique about the food that the Acacia tree provides for the ants but I will touch on it in another topic.
This symbiotic arrange is so unique that there is a spider also getting in on this arrangement. The spider in this case has turned almost vegetarian and steals the Beltian bodies for food. The spider is also able to partake the nectar. The spider still eats other insects like ant larvae and other loitering insects but the plant parts make a major part of its diet.
Hungry?
Update:
Although the plants appears to control the ants, things are not so simple for the Acacia tree. There is a caterpillar that competes for the ants' protection by producing a sugary output that the ants consume. In return, the caterpillar gets to feed on the Acacia leaves as well as get protected by the ants.
Correction:
I made a mistake in saying that the Acacia tree was sold out by the ants. I got the specie of tree confused. It is the Inga tree that is sold out by ants.
There is a strange plant called the Acacia tree. It gets ants to work for it. The acacia ant defends the tree against any pest that attacks it. The pest can be several times larger than the ant and it will still be attacked when it is feeding on the Acacia tree. Most people may assume that the acacia ants are just extremely territorial. The next factoid will eliminate such belief. Any vines that try to creep on the Acacia Tree to compete for sunlight gets the offending part trimmed off. The ants just chomp off the vine and lets the plant material fall to the ground. The ants also provide weeding services by attacking any seedlings near the tree.
Of course the acacia ants do have a few benefits by protecting the tree. The tree provides Beltian bodies (Detachable nodules that are protein, lipid and sugar rich) for food for the ants. It also provides nectar that ants use to feed their young. The ants live in the hollow thorns of the Acacia tree. This is something unique about the food that the Acacia tree provides for the ants but I will touch on it in another topic.
This symbiotic arrange is so unique that there is a spider also getting in on this arrangement. The spider in this case has turned almost vegetarian and steals the Beltian bodies for food. The spider is also able to partake the nectar. The spider still eats other insects like ant larvae and other loitering insects but the plant parts make a major part of its diet.
Hungry?
Update:
Although the plants appears to control the ants, things are not so simple for the Acacia tree. There is a caterpillar that competes for the ants' protection by producing a sugary output that the ants consume. In return, the caterpillar gets to feed on the Acacia leaves as well as get protected by the ants.
Correction:
I made a mistake in saying that the Acacia tree was sold out by the ants. I got the specie of tree confused. It is the Inga tree that is sold out by ants.
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