ABSTRACT
Leaf-cutting ants in the genus Atta are among the most destructive insects in the tropical and subtropical Americas. Particularly susceptible crops include citrus, cocoa, coffee, maize, cotton, eucalyptus and pines (Cherrett 1986b). The Texas leaf-cutting ant, Atta texana (Buckley), has the most northerly distribution of any species in this genus and is a serious pest of first- and second-year pine plantations in western Louisiana and eastern Texas, particularly on well-drained soils (Moser 1984; Cameron and Riggs 1985).
