Relatedness and inbreeding in a French population of the unicolonial antIndomyrmex humilis (Mayr)

Kaufmann, Brigitte; Boomsma, Jacobus J.; Passera, Luc; Petersen, Karen Koefoed

doi:10.1007/bf01249294

Cited by 45 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Despite intranidal mating, the inbreeding coefficient and relatedness between sexuals are not significantly different from zero (Kaufmann et al 1992). Young queens shed their wings rapidly after mating and remain for a period in their natal nest, so that they are indistinguishable from old queens (Keller et al 1989).…”

Section: Linepithema Humilementioning

confidence: 99%

Mode of colony foundation influences the primary sex ratio in ants

Aron

Passera

1999

Animal Behaviour

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In ants, young queens can found new colonies independently (without the help of workers) or dependently (with the help of workers). It has been suggested that differences in the mode of colony founding strongly influence queen survival and colony development. This is because independent queens are constrained to produce a worker force rapidly, before they deplete their body reserves and to resist the intense intercolony competition during the founding stage. By contrast, queens that found colonies dependently remain with the workers, which probably results in a lower mortality rate and earlier production of reproductive offspring. Consequently, in species that found independently, queens of incipient colonies are expected to produce mostly worker brood by laying a lower fraction of haploid (male) eggs than queens in mature colonies; such a difference would not occur in species founding dependently. We compared the primary sex ratio (proportion of male-determined eggs) laid by queens in incipient and mature colonies of two ant species, Lasius niger and Linepithema humile, showing independent and dependent modes of colony founding, respectively. As predicted, L. niger queens of incipient colonies laid a lower proportion of haploid eggs than queens from mature colonies. By contrast, queens of L. humile laid a similar proportion of haploid eggs in both incipient and mature colonies. These results provide the first evidence that (1) the primary sex ratio varies according to the mode of colony foundation, and (2) queens can adjust the primary sex ratio according to the life history stage of the colony in ants.

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Section: Linepithema Humilementioning

confidence: 99%

Mode of colony foundation influences the primary sex ratio in ants

Aron

Passera

1999

Animal Behaviour

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“…Indeed, previous genetic studies on introduced L. humile populations failed to demonstrate a greater than zero relatedness among nestmate workers (Kaufmann et al 1992;Krieger and Keller 2000;Tsutsui and Case 2001;Ingram 2002a;Ingram and Gordon 2003) or gave equivocal results (Ingram 2002b).…”

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confidence: 99%

Native Supercolonies of Unrelated Individuals in the Invasive Argentine Ant

et al. 2006

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Abstract. Kinship among group members has long been recognized as a main factor promoting the evolution of sociality and reproductive altruism, yet some ants have an extraordinary social organization, called unicoloniality, whereby individuals mix freely among physically separated nests. This type of social organization is not only a key attribute responsible for the ecological dominance of these ants, but also an evolutionary paradox because relatedness between nestmates is effectively zero. Recently, it has been proposed that, in the Argentine ant, unicoloniality is a derived trait that evolved after its introduction into new habitats. Here we test this basic assumption by conducting a detailed genetic analysis of four native and six introduced populations with five to 15 microsatellite loci and one mitochondrial gene. In contrast to the assumption that native populations consist of family-based colonies with related individuals who are aggressive toward members of other colonies, we found that native populations also form supercolonies, and are effectively unicolonial. Moreover, just as in introduced populations, the relatedness between nestmates is not distinguishable from zero in these native range supercolonies. Genetic differentiation between native supercolonies was very high for both nuclear and mitochondrial markers, indicating extremely limited gene flow between supercolonies. The only important difference between the native and introduced populations was that supercolonies were several orders of magnitude smaller in the native range (25-500 m). This size difference has important consequences for our understanding of the evolution and stability of unicolonial structures because the relatively small size of supercolonies in the native range implies that competition can occur between supercolonies, which can act as a break on the spread of selfish mutants by eliminating supercolonies harboring them.

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“…However, later studies showed polygyny as the principal social structure of many species (Pamilo & Rosengren, 1984;Kaufmann et al, 1992;Pamilo, 1993). In some species polygyny can be facultative (Seppä, 1992;Aron et al, 1999).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic variability and social structure of colonies in Acromyrmex heyeri and A. striatus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

2001

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The breeding structure of both colony and population of social insects can be examined by genetic analysis. Colonies of the leaf-cutting ants Acromyrmex heyeri and A. striatus (Myrmicinae, Attini) were thus analyzed for isoenzyme systems MDH, a-GPDH, and AMY to describe genotype variability and social structure. A total of five loci were investigated (three for amylase and one for each other system). Ninety-seven colonies of A. heyeri and 103 of A. striatus were sampled in different localities in Southern Brazil (State of Rio Grande do Sul). The genotypes found show the occurrence of monogyny and polygyny associated or not with polyandry, which indicates that the social organization is colony-specific. The polygyny and polyandry observed are likely to be responsible for the great genotypic diversity of the colonies. The average inbreeding coefficient per colony was higher in A. striatus than in A. heyeri, which may reflect the different patterns of production of sexual individuals and nuptial flight of those two species.Key words: Attini, genetic polymorphism, breeding structure, leaf-cutter ants. RESUMOVariabilidade genética e estrutura social das colônias de Acromyrmex heyeri e A. striatus (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)A estrutura de cruzamento de colônias e populações de insetos sociais pode ser observada por análise genética. Assim, colônias de formigas cortadeiras Acromyrmex heyeri e A. striatus (Myrmicinae, Attini) foram analisadas para os sistemas isoenzimáticos MDH, a-GPDH e AMY, a fim de descrever sua variabilidade genotípica e estrutura social. Foram investigados cinco locos (três para amilase e um para cada outro sistema), em 97 colônias de A. heyeri e 103 de A. striatus, amostradas em diversas localidades do Rio Grande do Sul. Os genótipos encontrados indicaram a ocorrência de monoginia e poliginia associadas ou não à poliandria, indicando que a organização social é colônia específica. Tanto a poliginia quanto a poliandria são responsáveis pela grande diversidade genotípica das colônias. O coeficiente de endocruzamento médio por colônia foi mais alto em A. striatus do que em A. heyeri e pode refletir os diferentes padrões de produção dos indivíduos sexuados e de vôo nupcial das duas espécies.Palavras-chave: Attini, polimorfismo genético, estrutura de cruzamento, formigas cortadeiras.Braz. J. Biol., 61(4): 667-678 668 DIEHL, E., ARAÚJO, A. M. de and CAVALLI-MOLINA, S.

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Relatedness and inbreeding in a French population of the unicolonial antIndomyrmex humilis (Mayr)

Cited by 45 publications

References 17 publications

Mode of colony foundation influences the primary sex ratio in ants

Mode of colony foundation influences the primary sex ratio in ants

Native Supercolonies of Unrelated Individuals in the Invasive Argentine Ant

Genetic variability and social structure of colonies in Acromyrmex heyeri and A. striatus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

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