FIG 1.

The fungus-farming ant Apterostigma dentigerum, seen on top of its fungal garden (A), maintains symbiotic Pseudonocardia actinobacteria, shown here in axenic culture (B). Secondary metabolites from Pseudonocardia inhibit the growth of Escovopsis pathogens that directly consume the fungal garden. Three Escovopsis phylotypes, fuzzy brown (C), yellow (D), and brown (E), are known to infect A. dentigerum gardens. Pseudonocardia and Escovopsis were sampled from Central America (F), with focal populations residing in the Panama Canal Zone (G). Maps created in R using plotly.