Myrmecodia
Encyclopedia
Myrmecodia is a genus
of epiphytic myrmecophyte
s (ant plants) native to Southeast Asia
and large islands extending south to Queensland
in Australia
. Myrmecodia plants grow in tree branches and on trunks. In nature, Myrmecodia tubers often grow hanging downward on bare branches without significant amounts of substrate, and thus depend upon symbiosis for most nutriment. The plants store food and water in a greyish brown caudex
that swells and grows spines over time. The thick, unbranched stems are covered in clypeoli and alveoli which also grow spines and are densely filled with dry bracts.
From the alveoli emerge uninteresting white flowers which can self-pollinate to yield a bright orange, fleshy berry
filled with up to six small seeds
. Seed dispersal is by birds, that often deposit droppings on the branches and trunks of trees they land on. In this they resemble various parasitic plants such as the mistletoe
s in families such as Loranthaceae
, Santalaceae
, and Misodendraceae
, but Myrmecodia species are unrelated to the true parasites, being in the coffee- and gardenia family Rubiaceae
. Nor are they known to be significantly parasitic themselves, in spite of being epiphytes; their well-developed leaves, plus their adaptations to mutualism
with ants, suggest that they use the plants on which they grow mainly for support and escape from deep shade on the forest floor.
They form a symbiotic relationship
with ants and fungi. Ant plants provide habitats for ant colonies high up into the forest canopy, protecting them from the elements and also predators because of the spines. Hollow, smooth-walled tunnels form within the caudex with external entrance holes, providing an above-ground home for ant colonies. Ants likewise provide defense for the plant and prevent tissue damage. Ant colonies also provide nutrients to the plants by leaving wastes within the tunnels inside the caudex. Special glands lining the tunnels then absorb nutriment for the plant. This symbiosis allows the plants to effectively gather nutrients (via the ants) from a much larger area than the roots ever could cover.
Native people in Vietnam
and Papua New Guinea
have been using it for generations to treat many ailments .
Myrmecodia is derived from Greek myrmekodes meaning ant-like or full of ants.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of epiphytic myrmecophyte
Myrmecophyte
Myrmecophyte is a plant that lives in a mutualistic association with a colony of ants. There are over 100 different genera of myrmecophytes. These plants possess structural adaptations that provide ants with food and/or shelter. These specialized structures include domatia, food bodies, and...
s (ant plants) native to Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
and large islands extending south to Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. Myrmecodia plants grow in tree branches and on trunks. In nature, Myrmecodia tubers often grow hanging downward on bare branches without significant amounts of substrate, and thus depend upon symbiosis for most nutriment. The plants store food and water in a greyish brown caudex
Caudex
A caudex is a form of stem morphology appearing as a thickened, short, perennial stem that is either underground or near ground level . It may be swollen for the purpose of water storage, especially in xerophytes...
that swells and grows spines over time. The thick, unbranched stems are covered in clypeoli and alveoli which also grow spines and are densely filled with dry bracts.
From the alveoli emerge uninteresting white flowers which can self-pollinate to yield a bright orange, fleshy berry
Berry
The botanical definition of a berry is a fleshy fruit produced from a single ovary. Grapes are an example. The berry is the most common type of fleshy fruit in which the entire ovary wall ripens into an edible pericarp. They may have one or more carpels with a thin covering and fleshy interiors....
filled with up to six small seeds
SEEDS
SEEDS is a voluntary organisation registered under the Societies Act of India....
. Seed dispersal is by birds, that often deposit droppings on the branches and trunks of trees they land on. In this they resemble various parasitic plants such as the mistletoe
Mistletoe
Mistletoe is the common name for obligate hemi-parasitic plants in several families in the order Santalales. The plants in question grow attached to and within the branches of a tree or shrub.-Mistletoe in the genus Viscum:...
s in families such as Loranthaceae
Loranthaceae
Loranthaceae is a family of flowering plants, which has been universally recognized by taxonomists. It consists of about 75 genera and 1,000 species of woody plants, many of them hemi-parasites, all of them except three having the mistletoe habit...
, Santalaceae
Santalaceae
Santalaceae is a widely distributed family of flowering plants which, like other members of Santalales, are partially parasitic on other plants...
, and Misodendraceae
Misodendraceae
Misodendron is a genus of hemiparasites which grow as mistletoes on various species of Nothofagus. The twelve species are all restricted to South America.Misodendron is placed in its own family, Misodendraceae, in the order Santalales...
, but Myrmecodia species are unrelated to the true parasites, being in the coffee- and gardenia family Rubiaceae
Rubiaceae
The Rubiaceae is a family of flowering plants, variously called the coffee family, madder family, or bedstraw family. The group contains many commonly known plants, including the economically important coffee , quinine , and gambier , and the horticulturally valuable madder , west indian jasmine ,...
. Nor are they known to be significantly parasitic themselves, in spite of being epiphytes; their well-developed leaves, plus their adaptations to mutualism
Mutualism
Mutualism is the way two organisms of different species biologically interact in a relationship in which each individual derives a fitness benefit . Similar interactions within a species are known as co-operation...
with ants, suggest that they use the plants on which they grow mainly for support and escape from deep shade on the forest floor.
They form a symbiotic relationship
Symbiosis
Symbiosis is close and often long-term interaction between different biological species. In 1877 Bennett used the word symbiosis to describe the mutualistic relationship in lichens...
with ants and fungi. Ant plants provide habitats for ant colonies high up into the forest canopy, protecting them from the elements and also predators because of the spines. Hollow, smooth-walled tunnels form within the caudex with external entrance holes, providing an above-ground home for ant colonies. Ants likewise provide defense for the plant and prevent tissue damage. Ant colonies also provide nutrients to the plants by leaving wastes within the tunnels inside the caudex. Special glands lining the tunnels then absorb nutriment for the plant. This symbiosis allows the plants to effectively gather nutrients (via the ants) from a much larger area than the roots ever could cover.
Native people in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
and Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
have been using it for generations to treat many ailments .
Myrmecodia is derived from Greek myrmekodes meaning ant-like or full of ants.