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.
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