Antbutterflies: Butterflies That Follow Army Ants to Feed on Antbird Droppings

5 December 1980

journal article
research article
Published by American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Science

Vol. 210 (4474) , 1147-1148
https://doi.org/10.1126/science.210.4474.1147

Abstract

Females of three species of tropical rain forest ithomiine butterflies orient to swarms of army ants (Eciton burchelli) and feed on bird droppings found there. The antbirds associated with swarm raids of these ants provide a predictable source of droppings, an otherwise sparsely distributed resource.

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