PREMAPHOTOS / Leaf-cutting ants (Atta sexdens) returning to their nest with cut off portions of leaf for their fungus garden, in rainforest, Brazil

Mark Moffett / Army Ant (Labidus sp) group swarm over a Leafcutter (Atta sexdens) soldier, both species have massive, well defended colonies and normally avoid each other, in this case, the two armies retreated with...

Mark Moffett / Leafcutter Ant (Atta sexdens) soldier, close-up, the largest worker in many leafcutter colonies specialize in defense, their enlarged heads contain massive adductor muscles to work their powerful jaws...

Mitsuhiko Imamori / Leafcutter Ant (Atta sexdens) group carrying leaves across branch, Central America

Mark Moffett / Leafcutter Ant (Atta sexdens) comes in a variety of worker sizes, each one has a special function in the society, here one of the smallest workers carries fungus around, planting wherever there is a n...

Mark Moffett / Leafcutter Ant (Atta sexdens) small worker carrying fungus around, planting it wherever there is a new space in the garden, French Guiana

Mark Moffett / Leafcutter Ant (Atta sexdens) queen, lives for 20 years, each colony has only one queen that mates only at the start of her life, collecting all the sperm needed to produce millions of workers, when s...

Premaphotos / Leaf-cutting ants (Atta sexdens) returning to their nest with cut off portions of leaf for their fungus garden, in Amazonian rainforest, Brazil

Premaphotos / Leaf-cutting ant (Atta sexdens) winged queen ants emerging from their nest in rainforest, Brazil

Premaphotos / Leaf-cutting ants (Atta sexdens) returning to their nest with cut off portions of leaf for their fungus garden, in Amazonian rainforest, Brazil

Mark Moffett / Leafcutter Ant (Atta sexdens) workers retrieve leaves