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The Toiling Ant: When Leaf-cutters Can't Cut It.

submitted by ant

1 decade 3 years 10 months 4 weeks ago

"Leaf-cutter ants rely on their razor-sharp mandibles to cut leaves to pieces. But over time, their mandibles dull. Physicist Robert Schofield, of the University of Oregon, looked at what happens when the aging ants struggle with their snipping. He and his colleagues found they take on a new job."

"Leaf-cutter ants rely on their razor sharp mandibles to snip leaves to pieces. (The ants don't consume the leaves; they use the foliage as the base for fungi farming.) Just like knives, over time ant mandibles get duller. What happens to these aging ants when they can't cut it?"

More: http://www.sciencefriday.com/program/archives/201012312 ...

From http://blog.wildaboutants.com/2011/01/01/leafcutter-ants-get-job-done/ ...