Insect Agriculture: A Look into the Nest of Fungus-Growing Ants, by Beth Llanas of 'Bugs With Beth'

Fungus growing ants are easily one of the most fascinating examples of coevolution on the planet. Our understanding of the level of fidelity between these ants and their cultivated fungi is severely lacking, yet we have learned such valuable information since their first descriptions.

Believed to rise right alongside the Cenozoic era, the “Age of Mammals” could arguably be known as the “Age of Agriculture.”

Beth will discuss a broad range of key factors that have played important roles in the progression of these relationships ranging from phylogenetic history to the different systems in which the ants farm.


About the speaker:

Beth Llanas is a cosmetologist by day and an aspiring naturalist by night. Her drive to engage more professionally in the natural world came from a sudden and intense fascination with insects, specifically ants, around 2018. In the years focusing on Myrmecology, she stumbled onto her niche, fungus growing ants. This newfound passion exposed a new appeal for fungi as a whole.

Beth is a certified Wisconsin Master Naturalist. She also is a Certified Wild Mushroom Identifier, through the Wisconsin Mycological Society, holds a Bugs 101 certification through the University of Alberta online, and has two pest control certifications through the WI Dept. of Agriculture with focus on biological control agents. She runs her social media accounts under “Bugs with Beth”, where she shares facts on the insects of Wisconsin and is currently an active member of the WMS Science Committee, and newly-elected member to the 2026 WMS board of directors.