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Testing the reproductive groundplan hypothesis in ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
Tobias Pamminger1, William O H Hughes1
1School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton, BN1 9QG, United Kingdom.
Evolution; International Journal of Organic Evolution
|October 27, 2016
Summary
The reproductive groundplan hypothesis explains how sterile insect workers evolved. This study confirms the hypothesis in ants, linking worker behavior to conserved ancestral traits.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary Biology
- Behavioral Ecology
- Social Insects
Background:
- Complex societies feature obligate reproductive division of labor, with sterile workers performing crucial tasks.
- The evolution of worker castes, crucial for major evolutionary transitions, remains a key question.
- The reproductive groundplan hypothesis (RGPH) proposes conserved ancestral traits underpin worker evolution.
Purpose of the Study:
- To empirically test the RGPH's prediction of an association between allomaternal behavior and physiology in ant workers.
- To assess the general validity of the RGPH in ants, the most species-rich social insect clade.
Main Methods:
- Phylogenetically controlled comparative analysis integrating literature data and targeted species sampling.
- Investigating the link between allomaternal behavior and physiological state in ants.
Main Results:
- Findings provide strong support for the RGPH as a general framework for worker caste evolution.
- The study demonstrates a significant association between allomaternal behavior and physiological state in ants.
Conclusions:
- The RGPH offers a robust explanation for the evolution of the worker caste in social insects.
- This research illuminates a major transition in evolutionary history by validating the RGPH in ants.
