SAPROPHYTISM AND SYMBIOSIS 



327 



Acacia), secrete a substance which is greatly liked by 

 another kind of ants, a smaller, war-like species. These 

 ants, attracted b}- the much-prized food, make their home 

 on the tree or in special caAities in it, and repel all at- 

 tempts of the leaf-cutting species to reach the foliage. 



Fig. 234. — Epiphytic group of bromeliads and orchids on a tree, in Cuba. 

 (Photo by JI. T. Cook.) 



Such trees are called ant-loving {myrmecophylous) , or 

 myrmecoph}'tes. 



307. Epiphjrtisni. — Any plant (whether parasite or not) 

 that li\es on another, or upon any other convenient 

 support (Fig. 23 0. is an epiphyte, but the term is com- 



