Busy bodies work all day at the San Diego Zoo

A colony of leafcutter ants, arguably some of the hardest working members of the Animal Kingdom, is now laboring away in a new habitat at the Children's Zoo. The insect house, Spineless Marvels, is home to the industrious ants. Native to Central and South America, they never seem to rest in their quest for more leaf material for their underground fungus gardens.

Guests can watch the work both above ground, and, thanks to the cutaway design of the habitat, see the subterranean activity they would never be able to witness in the wild.

"Ants are remarkable creatures," said Paige Howorth, San Diego Zoo entomology animal care supervisor. "The social structures of colonies like this one are based on an elaborate division of labor, where the participation of each member is vital to the success of the entire colony. Individual ants cut and carry leaves, remove trash, feed the queen and the brood and defend the colony. They cooperate to complete these tasks and more, and they do it all without any guidance or instruction at all."

The leaf material the ants gather is not used for food but is part of a complex symbiotic relationship. The leaves are brought into the underground nest to provide fuel for a fungus that is the only food the ants eat. The ants "manage" the fungus, removing older, decaying areas and applying special bacteria to control an invasive mold.

The 100-acre San Diego Zoo is operated by the not-for-profit Zoological Society of San Diego. The Zoological Society, dedicated to the conservation of endangered species and their habitats, engages in conservation and research work around the globe and is responsible for maintaining accredited horticultural, animal, library, and photo collections.

The Zoological Society also manages the 1,800-acre San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park (more than half of which has been set aside as protected native species habitat) and the San Diego Zoo's Beckman Center for Conservation Research. The important conservation and science work of these entities is supported in part by the Foundation for the Zoological Society of San Diego.

For more information, log on to Sandiegozoo.org.