Exploring the vegetation: Seed harvester ants climb and remove seeds from a giant cactus in a semiarid environment

Abstract

The red harvester ant (Pogonomyrmex barbatus) was observed in situ for the first time climbing and directly removing seeds from different individuals of the giant cactus Neobuxbaumia tetetzo in a Neotropical semiarid environment in central Mexico. Here, we explain how this harvester ant species, by overcoming a vertical barrier (reaching up 3.46 m), has amplified the two-dimensional spatial dimensions in which its worker ants may forage. We discuss the ecological traits that could drive this unusual behavior and its possible implications for the cactus.