Scientific Name:  Acromyrmex versicolor
Order:  Hymenoptera
Family:  Formicidae
Diet:  Their sole source of food is a fungus that they have a mutualistic relationship with.  They grow it and it is completely dependent upon them for its survival.  The fungus garden is started by a small ?plug? of fungus brought by the queen from her home colony.  Workers collect leaves and other plant parts and insert them into the fungus that grows underground.   They search for plant matter in the fall, spring, and on cool summer mornings.  They remain underground during other times.
Vegetation Association:  They search for plant material and build colonies underground.
Predators:  Lizards and birds. 
Life Stages:  Leaf cutter ants hatch from eggs and go through many larval stages before becoming adults.
Notes:  Multiple new queens will get together to form colonies underground.  By working together they can get underground faster and escape the heat as well as predators.  The queens of these colonies are one of the longest living insects known to exist.
Photo:  To be added.

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