What sugary secretion do yellow crazy ants acquire by "farming" sap-sucking insects?
Answer
Honeydew
Yellow crazy ants engage in a specialized, detrimental form of agricultural management concerning native vegetation by protecting and tending to sap-sucking insects such as aphids and scale insects. The benefit derived from this symbiotic relationship for the ants is the acquisition of a sweet, sugary substance excreted by these insects, which is known as honeydew. In exchange for protection from their natural predators, the farmed insects provide this resource to the ants. This management activity stresses or outright kills the host native plants, fundamentally altering the local landscape structure and depleting essential resources required by other native species that are not part of this destructive farming cycle.
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