I traveled with other environmentally oriented undergadautes Rutgers students to the La Selva Biological Research Station, located on the Puerto Viejo in Sarapiquí, Costa Rica. The station is funded by the Organization for Tropical Studies (OTS). 

My fellow students and I attended various research workshops. I learned how to estimate the amount of carbon is sequestered by forests, collect microclimate data, and most importantly, how to keep a nature journal. 

During the trip, I met my future lab mates and research advisor. We bonded over our a shared fascination of Atta cephalotes, Costa Rica's native species of leaf cutter ant. My labmates and I conducted a short-term resarch project on the ants. A. cephalotes has coevolved with Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, a basidiomycota fungus, for 60 million years (1). The two organisms have developed a mutualistic codependent relationship: A. cephalotes colonies gather and sterilize plant material for the fungal farm, while L. gonglyophorus degrades recalcitrant compounds locked in the plant matter for the ants’ consumption (2).

In our observations of the various colony entry points, we hypothesized that each entrance served a distinct purpose. At the "main entrance," streams of ants poured into the largest hole, all of them carrying fresh green leaves. At the "berry entrance," which is smaller and several feet away from the main, ants tiny berries and other organic matter into the colony. At the "graveyard," ants of various castes that were visibly injured displayed abnormal behaviors. 

In an attempt to elucidate the causes of these behavioral patterns, the population of ants and their corresponding caste were quantified at each entrance. Communication based interactions, characterized by antennal touches, were observed and quantified at each entry point, mid-point, and at the base of the suspected foraged tree. 

We only had enough time to collect data during midday, which is the the ants' least productive time period. We noticed that foraging behaviors ceased suddenly under direct sunlight and social interactions increased exponentially, with foraging behaviors resuming upon cloud coverage. We measured the temperature differences, and observed an approximate 10°F increase at the midpoint of the path under direct sunlight, indicating that the ants' foraging behaviors are influenced by heat exposure. 

I hope to someday return to Costa Rica to conduct a long-term and involved study on A. Cephalotes, and more specifically, their biochemical relations with L. gonglyophorus.