Introduction Rubiaceae Asclepiadaceae Nepenthaceae Bromeliaceae Orchidaceae Polypodiaceae Ecology and    evolution Cultivation References

Orchidaceae      Two genera of Caribbean and Central American orchids, Caularthron and Myrmecophila, are ant-house plants. Caularthron contains two species, C. bimellatum and D. bicornutum, while Myrmecophila contains at least eight species. The plants are epiphytes that grow in very sunny, dry habitats. In both genera, the domatia consist of hollow pseudobulbs with a small entrance hole at the base, and at least one species of Myrmecophila, M. tibicinis, has been shown to derive nutritional benefit from debris deposited by ants in its pseudobulbs (Rico-Gray et al., 1989). Given their great similarity, it seems likely that other Myrmecophila species are also ant-fed epiphytes.      Both Caularthron and Myrmecophila are fairly common in cultivation and have been used by orchid hybridizers. Caularthron is most frequently encountered under the older generic name Diacrium. Many authors have placed the Myrmecophila species in the genus Schomburgkia, but recent molecular analysis has demonstrated that the two genera are not closely related.

Myrmecophila albopurpurea