Science 101...Cordyceps and Ants *~ WOW!

Cordyceps is a genus of ascomycete fungi that includes thousands of species. The species that parasitizes the vegetable caterpillar — Cordyceps sinensis is the most famous of these, having long been considered a precious ingredient in Chinese traditional medicines.

All Cordyceps species are parasitic, mainly on insects and other arthropods (they are thus entomopathogenic fungi); a few are parasitic on other fungi like the subterranean, truffle-like Elaphomyces. The mycelium invades and eventually replaces the host tissue, while the elongated fruiting body (stroma) may be cylindrical, branched, or of complex shape. The stroma bears many small, flask-shaped perithecia that contain the asci. These in turn contain the thread-like ascospores, which usually break into fragments and are presumably infective.

The genus has a worldwide distribution and most species have been described from Asia (notably China, Japan, Korea and Thailand). The genus has many anamorphs (asexual states), of which Beauveria (possibly including Beauveria bassiana), Metarhizium, and Isaria) are the better known, since these have been used in biological control of insect pests. Cordyceps species are particularly abundant and diverse in humid temperate and tropical forests.

AND...from and Ants point of View...!!!