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Ants living on a Whistling Thorn (Acacia drepanolobium)
The common name of the plant (whistling thorn, whistling acacia) is derived from the observation that when wind blows over bulbous thorns in which ants have made entry/exit holes, they create a whistling noise.
Swollen thorns are naturally hollow and occupied by any one of several symbiotic ants species. These ant protect acacia from animals trying to eat the leaves.
Acacia drepanolobium, commonly known as Whistling Thorn (family Fabaceae), is a swollen-thorn acacia native to East Africa. The whistling thorn grows up to 6 meters tall. It produces a pair of straight thorns at each node, some of which have large bulbous bases. These swollen thorns are naturally hollow and occupied by any one of several symbiotic ant species. The common name of the plant is derived from the observation that when wind blows over bulbous thorns in which ants have made entry/exit.. more
