@down_the_ant_hill: #ants #antsofinstagram #hormigas #fourmi #fourmis #naturephotography #naturelover #macroinsect #insects_macro #bugs #insects #queenant #insectsofinstagram #fauna #myrmecology #entomology #formicidae #antsofcanada #downtheanthill #canadianantshop #canadaantcolony #cooperation #antwars #educational #science #butterflies Script: Wasps are chemically hijacking oak trees to produce food they use to rent ant nests for protection. This is oak gall cynipid wasp, Kokkocynips decidua. To reproduce, females lay an egg into a young oak leaf and inject chemicals that reprogram the plant into growing a "gall" - a custom-built nursery that's both a food source and a fortress. But even a fortress has its limits. Birds, squirrels, and parasitic wasps can still break in, so these wasps have evolved an even safer hiding place: an underground ant nest. Attached to the gall is a tiny ball of fat and protein called a kapello. Ants carry the gall into their nest to eat the kapello, then leave the gall behind. The developing wasp spends the rest of the winter protected deep underground before emerging and flying away in spring. The wasp makes the tree build a fortress, then, makes it pay to guard it.

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2026-09-04 21:33:05

2026-09-04 21:05:05

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