Incredibly, 80% of all insects live in jungles
fewer more successful than the ants. There can be 8 million individuals in a single hectare.
but jungle ants don't have it all their own way.
These bullet ants are showing some worrying symptoms.
Spores from a parasitic fungus called cordyceps
have infiltrated their bodies and their minds.
It's infected brain directs this ant upwards
then, utterly disorientated, it grips a stem with it's mandibles.
Those afflicted, that are discovered by the workers
are quickly taken away and dumped far away from the colony.
It seems extreme, but this is the reason why.
Like something out of science fiction
the fruiting body of the cordyceps erupts from the ant's head.
It can take three weeks to grow
and when finished, the deadly spores will burst from it's tip
then, any ant in the vicinity will be in serious risk of death.
The fungus is so virulent, it can wipe out whole colonies of ants
and it's not just ants that fall victim to this killer.
There are literally thousands of different types of cordyceps fungi
and remarkably, each specializes on just one species
but these attacks do have a positive effect on the jungle's diversity.
Since parasites like these stop any one group of animal getting the upper hand.
The more numerous a species becomes, the more likely it'll be attacked by it's nemesis
a cordyceps fungus.