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© 1998 International Society for Behavioral Ecology
research-article |
Kin selection, relatedness, and worker control of reproduction in a large-colony epiponine wasp, Brachygastra mellifica
aDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, MS 170, Rice University PO Box 1892, Houston, TX 77251-1892, USA bUSDA-ARS Subtropical Agricultural Research Laboratory, Honey Bee Unit 2413 E. Highway 83, Weslaco, TX 78596, USA
Address correspondence to J. E. Strassmann. E-mail: strassm{at}rice.edu
ABSTRACT
Hamilton's kin selection theory predicts conflicts of interest among relatives, even within highly cooperative social insect societies. Because workers are the most numerous caste, collective worker interests may be an important force in determining the outcome of conflicts. In this study, we used genotypes from two DNA microsatellite loci to show that two kinds of collective worker interests are satisfied in Brachygastra mellifica, a member of the multiqueen epiponine wasps. First, from the high relatedness of queens (0.66) and the fact that queens are singly mated (shown by genotyping their stored sperm), we calculated that new queens are reared in colonies with a harmonic mean of 1.2 old queens, whereas males are reared in colonies with much higher queen numbers. This split sex ratio result is predicted under worker control. It matches other studies of epiponines, but B. mellifica has much larger mature colonies (averaging 7951 adults) with many more queens (averaging 398), showing the pattern holds for large-colony species. Second, we report the first genetic data on parentage of males in epiponines and show that these are also consistent with collective worker interests. Workers are on average significantly more related to queens than to other workers (r = .37 versus .23) and should therefore suppress each other and allow the queens to lay haploid (male) eggs. Though many workers have developed ovaries and could lay eggs, the genetic analyses showed that most or all males come from queens.
Key words: Brachygastra mellifica, eusociality, genetic relatedness, mate number, microsatellites, split sex ratios, Vespidae, worker policing.
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