Journal
PLOS ONE
Volume 11, Issue 6, Pages -Publisher
PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0156847
Keywords
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Categories
Funding
- US National Science Foundation (NSF) [EAR_0617561, EAR_ 0854218, EAR 0933619]
- National Geographic Society (CRE)
- Ohio University
- James Cook University
- Marie Curie fellowship [321725]
- Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology [SFRH/BCC/52187/2013]
- Division Of Earth Sciences
- Directorate For Geosciences [1349825] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
- Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia [SFRH/BCC/52187/2013] Funding Source: FCT
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Based on molecular dating, the origin of insect agriculture is hypothesized to have taken place independently in three clades of fungus-farming insects: the termites, ants or ambrosia beetles during the Paleogene (66-24 Ma). Yet, definitive fossil evidence of fungus-growing behavior has been elusive, with no unequivocal records prior to the late Miocene (7-10 Ma). Here we report fossil evidence of insect agriculture in the form of fossil fungus gardens, preserved within 25 Ma termite nests from southwestern Tanzania. Using these well-dated fossil fungus gardens, we have recalibrated molecular divergence estimates for the origins of termite agriculture to around 31 Ma, lending support to hypotheses suggesting an African Paleogene origin for termite-fungus symbiosis; perhaps coinciding with rift initiation and changes in the African landscape.
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