Leafcutter
Guides
Attina
Fungus-growing Ants
Attina is a subtribe of fungus-growing ants within the subfamily Myrmicinae, comprising all known ant species that participate in obligate ant-fungus mutualism. These ants cultivate fungi as their sole food source, with leafcutter ants (genera Atta and Acromyrmex) being the most well-known members. The subtribe is sister to Dacetina and represents one of only two known groups of organisms (along with humans) that practice agriculture. Attina ants are native to the New World tropics and subtropics, where they play significant roles in nutrient cycling and soil modification.
Attini
fungus-growing ants, higher myrmicine ants
Attini is a tribe of New World ants renowned for cultivating symbiotic fungi in specialized nest chambers called fungus gardens. This mutualism, dating back approximately 30 million years, represents one of the most complex examples of agriculture outside humans. The ants provision their fungal cultivars with organic substrates including plant material, insect carcasses, and feces, while receiving nutrition from specialized fungal structures. The tribe encompasses diverse foraging strategies, from generalized debris collection to the conspicuous leaf-cutting behavior of Atta and Acromyrmex species. Attini ants maintain intricate associations with additional microbes, including actinobacteria that produce antibiotics protecting the fungal gardens from pathogens.
Megachile
Leafcutter bees, Leafcutting bees, Resin bees, Mortar bees
Megachile is a large, cosmopolitan genus of solitary bees in the family Megachilidae, comprising over 1,500 described species across more than 50 subgenera. The genus includes the commercially important alfalfa leafcutter bee (M. rotundata), managed globally for crop pollination. Species exhibit diverse nesting strategies: many cut circular leaf or petal pieces to line nest cells, while others use plant resin or mortar-like materials. The genus contains the world's largest bee, M. pluto (Wallace's Giant Bee), with a wingspan exceeding 6 cm.
Megachile texana
Texas leafcutter bee
Megachile texana is a solitary leafcutter bee native to the United States and southern Canada. Females construct nests using cut leaf pieces to line brood chambers, typically in soil burrows under rocks or clods. The species was first described by Ezra Townsend Cresson in 1878. Like other Megachile species, females carry pollen on scopal hairs beneath the abdomen rather than on the hind legs.