News Plants

These plants build ant condos that keep warring species apart 

In return, the plants reap a rich harvest of ant droppings and other detritus

A round spiky plant that grows high in the trees in Fiji looks like an overgrown kiwi sprouting some branches. Unseen are interior chambers that the plant grows, which host ant colonies.

Spiky greenish lumps dangling high in trees in Fiji belong to Squamellaria plants creating nature’s condo rental units for multiple cranky ant colonies.

Awkwafaba/Wikimedia Commons

By Susan Milius

Call them nature’s own luxury high-rise condo rentals.

Squamellaria plants, from the same family as coffee and quinine, are fat aerial tubers perched high in tropical trees.