A food substance produced by the Cecropia trees (tropical American trees that live in association with a colony of ants) on the trichilium (a pad at the base of the petiole or slender stem that supports the blade of a leaf): The nutrients, or the Müllerian bodies are consumed by the resident ants, which are usually Azteca but occasionally also by Camponotus balzani ants or Pachycondyla luteola ants.