These ants seem to get a special makeover, except that they don't get washed or removed. These makeover lingers to them till their death and they mean no good to the ants.
As unbelievable as they seem these are ants infected by a special species of fungus Ophiocordyceps Camponoti-rufipedis. These species of fungus is one of the few new discoveries from the rainforests of Brazil. They apparently infect the carpenter ant of the ant family and turn them into zombies. After infecting the ant body it adds on leaves, sprout, fruiting bodies and spreads spores to other ants. Each of the four recently discovered species of fungus which infects the ant body bear a resemblance in their life-cycle. They terminate with the appearance of a large sporocarp growing from the neck region of the host. (see image 1)
All the four species of fungus yet discovered are from Zona da Mata Atlantic rainforest system from south-eastern Brazil and they are assumed to represent only a small part of the zombie-ant fungus diversity.
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