Endosymbiont-mutualism
Guides
Camponotus laevigatus
Hairless Smooth Carpenter Ant
Camponotus laevigatus is a California endemic carpenter ant species that nests in dead oak branches, particularly of Quercus wislizeni (interior live oak). It maintains an obligate mutualism with the bacterial endosymbiont Blochmaniella, with which it shows strong codiversification patterns. Population genetic studies reveal three phylogeographic clusters with the Central Valley acting as a significant barrier to gene flow, and Pleistocene climatic cycles have shaped its current distribution.