Question

Myrmecophily is characterized by
A. Plants harbouring ants
B. Plants storing food underground
C. Plants imitating the habit of animals
D. Plants with small leaves

Answer 1

Hint: Myrmecophiles can have different functions in their host colony of ants. In nests, several eat waste materials, like dead larvae, dead ants, or fungi that emerge in the nest.

Complete Answer:
Myrmecophily is the term used for beneficial interactions among ants and a number of other creatures such as crops, certain arthropods, and fungi between beneficial interspecies.

Now, let us find the solution from the options-
-The symbiotic relationship among plants and ants where certain plants supply food to crops or cover eggs and ants assist them in pollination is myrmecophily.
- In regulating arthropod productivity, availability, and population organisation, ants play a key role. There is proof that the evolution of myrmecophilous encounters has led to ants' abundance and environmental sustainability by maintaining a stable and energy-rich source of food and thereby supplying ants with a comparative edge over most invertebrate predators. Thus, option B is not the correct answer.
- Myrmecophile is a term used specifically for species associated with ants. An estimated 10,000 species of ants (Formicidae) are present, with greater distribution in the tropics. Thus, option C is not the correct option.
- Myrmecophily relates to mutualist relations with ants, although the term can also relate to commensal or indeed parasitic relationships in its more common use. Thus, option D is not the correct option.

Thus, the correct answer is option (A) Plants harbouring ants.

Note: In butterflies from the Lycaenidae family, myrmecophilous interactions are better known. Via specialised organs, many lycaenid caterpillars generate nectar and interact with the ants by sound and vibration. It is assumed that contact with ants decreases the parasitisation of butterfly caterpillars.