Certain species of which one of the following organisms are well known as cultivators of fungi ?
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Answer: A. Leafcutter ants and some other ant species grow fungus gardens in their nests, feeding them with cut leaves and eating the fungus. This is a well-known example of farming by insects; some termites and beetles do it too.
Watch for: Students may think of termites, which also farm fungi, but among the options only ants do it.
Why the other options are wrong
- B. Wrong because cockroaches do not cultivate fungi.
- C. Wrong because crabs are not known as fungus farmers.
- D. Wrong because spiders are predators and do not farm fungi.
Source to check: Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, research on fungus-farming ants
Answer from the official UPSC key. Written and fact-checked by AI against the official key. Spotted a mistake? Report it.