What mutualistic exchange fuels the massive growth engine of the yellow crazy ant supercolonies?
Answer
Fierce protection of sap-sucking insects for carbohydrate-rich honeydew.
The engine driving growth is a mutualistic relationship where ants fiercely protect pests like scale insects and aphids from natural enemies. In return, the ants receive honeydew, the pests' carbohydrate-rich waste product, which the ants farm as their primary energy source.
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