DOCSLIB.ORG

The Higher Classification of the Ant Subfamily Ponerinae (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with a Review of Ponerine Ecology and Behavior

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Higher Classification of the Ant Subfamily Ponerinae (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with a Review of Ponerine Ecology and Behavior Zootaxa 3817 (1): 001–242 ISSN 1175-5326 (print edition) www.mapress.com/zootaxa/ Monograph ZOOTAXA Copyright © 2014 Magnolia Press ISSN 1175-5334 (online edition) http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3817.1.1 http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:A3C10B34-7698-4C4D-94E5-DCF70B475603 ZOOTAXA 3817 The Higher Classification of the Ant Subfamily Ponerinae (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with a Review of Ponerine Ecology and Behavior C.A. SCHMIDT1 & S.O. SHATTUCK2 1Graduate Interdisciplinary Program in Entomology and Insect Science, Gould-Simpson 1005, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721-0077. Current address: Native Seeds/SEARCH, 3584 E. River Rd., Tucson, AZ 85718. E-mail: [email protected] 2CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences, GPO Box 1700, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia. Current address: Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 0200 Magnolia Press Auckland, New Zealand Accepted by J. Longino: 21 Mar. 2014; published: 18 Jun. 2014 C.A. SCHMIDT & S.O. SHATTUCK The Higher Classification of the Ant Subfamily Ponerinae (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with a Review of Ponerine Ecology and Behavior (Zootaxa 3817) 242 pp.; 30 cm. 18 Jun. 2014 ISBN 978-1-77557-419-4 (paperback) ISBN 978-1-77557-420-0 (Online edition) FIRST PUBLISHED IN 2014 BY Magnolia Press P.O. Box 41-383 Auckland 1346 New Zealand e-mail: [email protected] http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/ © 2014 Magnolia Press All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, transmitted or disseminated, in any form, or by any means, without prior written permission from the publisher, to whom all requests to reproduce copyright material should be directed in writing. This authorization does not extend to any other kind of copying, by any means, in any form, and for any purpose other than private research use. ISSN 1175-5326 (Print edition) ISSN 1175-5334 (Online edition) 2 · Zootaxa 3817 (1) © 2014 Magnolia Press SCHMIDT & SHATTUCK Table of contents Abstract . 4 Introduction . 4 Material and methods . 5 Ponerine ecology and behavior: A brief review . 8 Social organization and mating systems . 9 Foraging behavior . 10 Morphological characters . 11 Classification of Ponerinae proposed here . 15 Keys to Ponerine genera . 17 Key to New World genera of Ponerinae . 18 Key to African and Malagasy genera of Ponerinae . 24 Key to Eurasian and Australian genera of Ponerinae . 36 Subfamily Ponerinae Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau . 46 Tribe Platythyreini Emery . 47 Platythyrea Roger . 48 Tribe Ponerini Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau . 52 Harpegnathos genus group . 53 Harpegnathos Jerdon . 53 Hypoponera genus group . 57 Hypoponera Santschi . 57 Odontomachus genus group . 64 Anochetus Mayr . 65 Asphinctopone Santschi. 70 Bothroponera Mayr. 72 Brachyponera Emery . 77 Buniapone gen. nov. 81 Euponera Forel . 83 Fisheropone gen. nov. 87 Hagensia Forel . 89 Leptogenys Roger . 92 Megaponera Mayr. 104 Mesoponera Emery . 107 Myopias Roger . 111 Odontomachus Latreille . 114 Odontoponera Mayr . 119 Ophthalmopone Forel . 122 Paltothyreus Mayr . 124 Phrynoponera Wheeler . 127 Promyopias Santschi . 129 Pseudoneoponera Donisthorpe . ..
Load more

Recommended publications
  • In Indonesian Grasslands with Special Focus on the Tropical Fire Ant, Solenopsis Geminata
    The Community Ecology of Ants (Formicidae) in Indonesian Grasslands with Special Focus on the Tropical Fire Ant, Solenopsis geminata. By Rebecca L. Sandidge A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Environmental Science, Policy, and Management in the Graduate Division of the University of California, Berkeley Committee in charge: Professor Neil D. Tsutsui, Chair Professor Brian Fisher Professor Rosemary Gillespie Professor Ellen Simms Fall 2018 The Community Ecology of Ants (Formicidae) in Indonesian Grasslands with Special Focus on the Tropical Fire Ant, Solenopsis geminata. © 2018 By Rebecca L. Sandidge 1 Abstract The Community Ecology of Ants (Formicidae) in Indonesian Grasslands with Special Focus on the Tropical Fire Ant, Solenopsis geminata. by Rebecca L. Sandidge Doctor of Philosophy in Environmental Science Policy and Management, Berkeley Professor Neil Tsutsui, Chair Invasive species and habitat destruction are considered to be the leading causes of biodiversity decline, signaling declining ecosystem health on a global scale. Ants (Formicidae) include some on the most widespread and impactful invasive species capable of establishing in high numbers in new habitats. The tropical grasslands of Indonesia are home to several invasive species of ants. Invasive ants are transported in shipped goods, causing many species to be of global concern. My dissertation explores ant communities in the grasslands of southeastern Indonesia. Communities are described for the first time with a special focus on the Tropical Fire Ant, Solenopsis geminata, which consumes grass seeds and can have negative ecological impacts in invaded areas. The first chapter describes grassland ant communities in both disturbed and undisturbed grasslands.
    [Show full text]
  • Turkish Journal of Biodiversity
    Turkish Journal of Biodiversity Turk J Biod, March 2020, 3(1): 21-31 https://doi.org/10.38059/biodiversity.698157 Journal homepage: http://turkbiod.artvin.edu.tr/ http://dergipark.gov.tr/biodiversity e-ISSN:2667-4386 RESEARCH ARTICLE Open Access Diversity of ants species in different habitat mosaics of Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanical Garden (Howrah, West Bengal, India) Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Hindistan Botanik Bahçesi'nin (Howrah, Batı Bengal, Hindistan) farklı yaşam alanı mozaiklerinde karınca türlerinin çeşitliliği Arka GOSWAMI a* , Arijit CHATTERJEE a , Sheela SAROJ b a Department of Environmental Science, Asutosh College, Kolkata, India b Zoological Survey of India, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Kolkata, India Article Info ABSTRACT ©2020 Ali Nihat Gökyiğit Botanical Ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) occupy a wide range of ecological niches and exploit various food Garden Application and Research resources either as herbivores or as predators or scavengers. This study establishes the diversity of Center of Artvin Coruh University. ants in an ex-situ conservation site dedicated for plants known as Indian Botanical garden situated amidst a congested city. It also documents the relation of ant community structure with different *Corresponding author: habitat mosaics present within this protected area. For this study pit fall trap was used as collection e-mail:[email protected] method and amalgamated within quadrat sampling (total 16 quadrats and each quadrat contains 9 ORCID: 0000-0002-8932-5113 pit fall traps placed uniformly) distributed in four different habitats and repeated in two consecutive Article history months. All the specimens were collected, preserved and identified meticulously. Total 27 species of Received: March 3, 2012 ants from 19 genera and 6 subfamilies are documented from the whole study area.
    [Show full text]
  • Nitrogen Containing Volatile Organic Compounds
    DIPLOMARBEIT Titel der Diplomarbeit Nitrogen containing Volatile Organic Compounds Verfasserin Olena Bigler angestrebter akademischer Grad Magistra der Pharmazie (Mag.pharm.) Wien, 2012 Studienkennzahl lt. Studienblatt: A 996 Studienrichtung lt. Studienblatt: Pharmazie Betreuer: Univ. Prof. Mag. Dr. Gerhard Buchbauer Danksagung Vor allem lieben herzlichen Dank an meinen gütigen, optimistischen, nicht-aus-der-Ruhe-zu-bringenden Betreuer Herrn Univ. Prof. Mag. Dr. Gerhard Buchbauer ohne dessen freundlichen, fundierten Hinweisen und Ratschlägen diese Arbeit wohl niemals in der vorliegenden Form zustande gekommen wäre. Nochmals Danke, Danke, Danke. Weiteres danke ich meinen Eltern, die sich alles vom Munde abgespart haben, um mir dieses Studium der Pharmazie erst zu ermöglichen, und deren unerschütterlicher Glaube an die Fähigkeiten ihrer Tochter, mich auch dann weitermachen ließ, wenn ich mal alles hinschmeissen wollte. Auch meiner Schwester Ira gebührt Dank, auch sie war mir immer eine Stütze und Hilfe, und immer war sie da, für einen guten Rat und ein offenes Ohr. Dank auch an meinen Sohn Igor, der mit viel Verständnis akzeptierte, dass in dieser Zeit meine Prioritäten an meiner Diplomarbeit waren, und mein Zeitbudget auch für ihn eingeschränkt war. Schliesslich last, but not least - Dank auch an meinen Mann Joseph, der mich auch dann ertragen hat, wenn ich eigentlich unerträglich war. 2 Abstract This review presents a general analysis of the scienthr information about nitrogen containing volatile organic compounds (N-VOC’s) in plants.
    [Show full text]
  • Morphology of the Novel Basimandibular Gland in the Ant Genus Strumigenys (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)
    insects Article Morphology of the Novel Basimandibular Gland in the Ant Genus Strumigenys (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) Chu Wang 1,* , Michael Steenhuyse-Vandevelde 1, Chung-Chi Lin 2 and Johan Billen 1 1 Zoological Institute, University of Leuven, Naamsestraat 59, Box 2466, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium; [email protected] (M.S.-V.); [email protected] (J.B.) 2 Department of Biology, National Changhua University of Education, Changhua 50007, Taiwan; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected] Simple Summary: Ants form a diverse group of social insects that are characterized by an over- whelming variety of exocrine glands, that play a key function in the communication system and social organization of the colony. Our focus goes to the genus Strumigenys, that comprise small slow-moving ants that mainly prey on springtails. We discovered a novel gland inside the mandibles of all 22 investigated species, using light and electron microscopy. As the gland occurs close to the base of the mandibles, we name it ‘basimandibular gland’ according to the putative description given to this mandible region in a publication by the eminent British ant taxonomist Barry Bolton in 1999. The gland exists in both workers and queens and appeared most developed in the queens of Strumigenys mutica. These queens in addition to the basimandibular gland also have a cluster of gland cells near the tip of their mandibles. The queens of this species enter colonies of other Strumigenys species and parasitize on them. We expect that the peculiar development of these glands inside the mandibles of these S. mutica queens plays a role in this parasitic lifestyle, and hope that future research can shed more light on the biology of these ants.
    [Show full text]
  • Native and Invasive Ants Affect Floral Visits of Pollinating Honey Bees in Pumpkin Flowers (Cucurbita Maxima)
    www.nature.com/scientificreports OPEN Native and invasive ants afect foral visits of pollinating honey bees in pumpkin fowers (Cucurbita maxima) Anjana Pisharody Unni1,3, Sajad Hussain Mir1,2, T. P. Rajesh1, U. Prashanth Ballullaya1, Thomas Jose1 & Palatty Allesh Sinu1* Global pollinator decline is a major concern. Several factors—climate change, land-use change, the reduction of fowers, pesticide use, and invasive species—have been suggested as the reasons. Despite being a potential reason, the efect of ants on fowers received less attention. The consequences of ants being attracted to nectar sources in plants vary depending upon factors like the nectar source’s position, ants’ identity, and other mutualists interacting with the plants. We studied the interaction between fower-visiting ants and pollinators in Cucurbita maxima and compared the competition exerted by native and invasive ants on its pollinators to examine the hypothesis that the invasive ants exacerbate more interference competition to pollinators than the native ants. We assessed the pollinator’s choice, visitation rate, and time spent/visit on the fowers. Regardless of species and nativity, ants negatively infuenced all the pollinator visitation traits, such as visitation rate and duration spent on fowers. The invasive ants exerted a higher interference competition on the pollinators than the native ants did. Despite performing pollination in fowers with generalist pollination syndrome, ants can threaten plant-pollinator mutualism in specialist plants like monoecious plants. A better understanding of factors infuencing pollination will help in implementing better management practices. Humans brought together what continents isolated. One very conspicuous evidence of this claim rests in the rearranged biota.
    [Show full text]
  • Ants in French Polynesia and the Pacific: Species Distributions and Conservation Concerns
    Ants in French Polynesia and the Pacific: species distributions and conservation concerns Paul Krushelnycky Dept of Plant and Environmental Protection Sciences, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii Hervé Jourdan Centre de Biologie et de Gestion des Populations, INRA/IRD, Nouméa, New Caledonia The importance of ants • In most ecosystems, form a substantial portion of a communities’ biomass (1/3 of animal biomass and ¾ of insect biomass in Amazon rainforest) Photos © Alex Wild The importance of ants • In most ecosystems, form a substantial portion of a communities’ biomass (1/3 of animal biomass and ¾ of insect biomass in Amazon rainforest) • Involved in many important ecosystem processes: predator/prey relationships herbivory seed dispersal soil turning mutualisms Photos © Alex Wild The importance of ants • Important in shaping evolution of biotic communities and ecosystems Photos © Alex Wild Ants in the Pacific • Pacific archipelagoes the most remote in the world • Implications for understanding ant biogeography (patterns of dispersal, species/area relationships, community assembly) • Evolution of faunas with depauperate ant communities • Consequent effects of ant introductions Hypoponera zwaluwenburgi Ants in the Amblyopone zwaluwenburgi Pacific – current picture Ponera bableti Indigenous ants in the Pacific? Approx. 30 - 37 species have been labeled “wide-ranging Pacific natives”: Adelomyrmex hirsutus Ponera incerta Anochetus graeffei Ponera loi Camponotus chloroticus Ponera swezeyi Camponotus navigator Ponera tenuis Camponotus rufifrons
    [Show full text]
  • Evaluation of the Chemical Defense Fluids of Macrotermes Carbonarius
    www.nature.com/scientificreports OPEN Evaluation of the chemical defense fuids of Macrotermes carbonarius and Globitermes sulphureus as possible household repellents and insecticides S. Appalasamy1,2*, M. H. Alia Diyana2, N. Arumugam2 & J. G. Boon3 The use of chemical insecticides has had many adverse efects. This study reports a novel perspective on the application of insect-based compounds to repel and eradicate other insects in a controlled environment. In this work, defense fuid was shown to be a repellent and insecticide against termites and cockroaches and was analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC– MS). Globitermes sulphureus extract at 20 mg/ml showed the highest repellency for seven days against Macrotermes gilvus and for thirty days against Periplaneta americana. In terms of toxicity, G. sulphureus extract had a low LC50 compared to M. carbonarius extract against M. gilvus. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis of the M. carbonarius extract indicated the presence of six insecticidal and two repellent compounds in the extract, whereas the G. sulphureus extract contained fve insecticidal and three repellent compounds. The most obvious fnding was that G. sulphureus defense fuid had higher potential as a natural repellent and termiticide than the M. carbonarius extract. Both defense fuids can play a role as alternatives in the search for new, sustainable, natural repellents and termiticides. Our results demonstrate the potential use of termite defense fuid for pest management, providing repellent and insecticidal activities comparable to those of other green repellent and termiticidal commercial products. A termite infestation could be silent, but termites are known as destructive urban pests that cause structural damage by infesting wooden and timber structures, leading to economic loss.
    [Show full text]
  • The Functions and Evolution of Social Fluid Exchange in Ant Colonies (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Marie-Pierre Meurville & Adria C
    ISSN 1997-3500 Myrmecological News myrmecologicalnews.org Myrmecol. News 31: 1-30 doi: 10.25849/myrmecol.news_031:001 13 January 2021 Review Article Trophallaxis: the functions and evolution of social fluid exchange in ant colonies (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Marie-Pierre Meurville & Adria C. LeBoeuf Abstract Trophallaxis is a complex social fluid exchange emblematic of social insects and of ants in particular. Trophallaxis behaviors are present in approximately half of all ant genera, distributed over 11 subfamilies. Across biological life, intra- and inter-species exchanged fluids tend to occur in only the most fitness-relevant behavioral contexts, typically transmitting endogenously produced molecules adapted to exert influence on the receiver’s physiology or behavior. Despite this, many aspects of trophallaxis remain poorly understood, such as the prevalence of the different forms of trophallaxis, the components transmitted, their roles in colony physiology and how these behaviors have evolved. With this review, we define the forms of trophallaxis observed in ants and bring together current knowledge on the mechanics of trophallaxis, the contents of the fluids transmitted, the contexts in which trophallaxis occurs and the roles these behaviors play in colony life. We identify six contexts where trophallaxis occurs: nourishment, short- and long-term decision making, immune defense, social maintenance, aggression, and inoculation and maintenance of the gut microbiota. Though many ideas have been put forth on the evolution of trophallaxis, our analyses support the idea that stomodeal trophallaxis has become a fixed aspect of colony life primarily in species that drink liquid food and, further, that the adoption of this behavior was key for some lineages in establishing ecological dominance.
    [Show full text]
  • James K. Wetterer
    James K. Wetterer Wilkes Honors College, Florida Atlantic University 5353 Parkside Drive, Jupiter, FL 33458 Phone: (561) 799-8648; FAX: (561) 799-8602; e-mail: [email protected] EDUCATION UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON, Seattle, WA, 9/83 - 8/88 Ph.D., Zoology: Ecology and Evolution; Advisor: Gordon H. Orians. MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY, East Lansing, MI, 9/81 - 9/83 M.S., Zoology: Ecology; Advisors: Earl E. Werner and Donald J. Hall. CORNELL UNIVERSITY, Ithaca, NY, 9/76 - 5/79 A.B., Biology: Ecology and Systematics. UNIVERSITÉ DE PARIS III, France, 1/78 - 5/78 Semester abroad: courses in theater, literature, and history of art. WORK EXPERIENCE FLORIDA ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY, Wilkes Honors College 8/04 - present: Professor 7/98 - 7/04: Associate Professor Teaching: Biodiversity, Principles of Ecology, Behavioral Ecology, Human Ecology, Environmental Studies, Tropical Ecology, Field Biology, Life Science, and Scientific Writing 9/03 - 1/04 & 5/04 - 8/04: Fulbright Scholar; Ants of Trinidad and Tobago COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY, Department of Earth and Environmental Science 7/96 - 6/98: Assistant Professor Teaching: Community Ecology, Behavioral Ecology, and Tropical Ecology WHEATON COLLEGE, Department of Biology 8/94 - 6/96: Visiting Assistant Professor Teaching: General Ecology and Introductory Biology HARVARD UNIVERSITY, Museum of Comparative Zoology 8/91- 6/94: Post-doctoral Fellow; Behavior, ecology, and evolution of fungus-growing ants Advisors: Edward O. Wilson, Naomi Pierce, and Richard Lewontin 9/95 - 1/96: Teaching: Ethology PRINCETON UNIVERSITY, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology 7/89 - 7/91: Research Associate; Ecology and evolution of leaf-cutting ants Advisor: Stephen Hubbell 1/91 - 5/91: Teaching: Tropical Ecology, Introduction to the Scientific Method VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY, Department of Psychology 9/88 - 7/89: Post-doctoral Fellow; Visual psychophysics of fish and horseshoe crabs Advisor: Maureen K.
    [Show full text]
  • Insecta: Hymenoptera: Formicidae): Type Specimens Deposited in the Natural History Museum Vienna (Austria) and a Preliminary Checklist
    Ann. Naturhist. Mus. Wien, B 121 9–18 Wien, Februar 2019 Notes on the ant fauna of Eritrea (Insecta: Hymenoptera: Formicidae): type specimens deposited in the Natural History Museum Vienna (Austria) and a preliminary checklist M. Madl* Abstract The ant collection of the Natural History Museum Vienna (Austria) contains syntypes of nine species described from Eritrea: Aphaenogaster clavata EMERY, 1877 (= Pheidole clavata (EMERY, 1877)), Cam- ponotus carbo EMERY, 1877, Melissotarsus beccarii EMERY, 1877, Monomorium bicolor EMERY, 1877, Pheidole rugaticeps EMERY, 1877, Pheidole speculifera EMERY, 1877, Polyrhachis antinorii EMERY, 1877 (= Polyrhachis viscosa SMITH, 1858) and Tetramorium doriae EMERY, 1881. All syntypes were collected in Eritrea except the syntype of Monomorium luteum EMERY, 1881, which was collected in Yemen. A prelimi- nary checklist of the ants of Eritrea comprises 114 species and subspecies of seven subfamilies. Zusammenfassung In der Ameisensammlung des Naturhistorischen Museums Wien (Österreich) werden Syntypen von neun Arten aufbewahrt, die aus Eritrea beschrieben worden sind: Aphaenogaster clavata EMERY, 1877 [= Phei- dole clavata (EMERY, 1877)], Camponotus carbo EMERY, 1877, Melissotarsus beccarii EMERY, 1877, Mono- morium bicolor EMERY, 1877, Pheidole rugaticeps EMERY, 1877, Pheidole speculifera EMERY, 1877, Poly- rhachis antinorii EMERY, 1877 (= Polyrhachis viscosa SMITH, 1858) und Tetramorium doriae EMERY, 1881. Alle Syntypen stammen aus Eritrea ausgenommen der Syntypus von Monomorium luteum EMERY, 1881, der in Jemen gesammelt wurde. Eine vorläufige Artenliste der Ameisen Eritreas umfasst 114 Arten und Unterarten aus sieben Unterfamilien. Key words: Formicidae, types, Camponotus, Melissotarsus, Monomorium, Pheidole, Polyrhachis, Tetra- morium, checklist, Eritrea, Yemen. Introduction The study of the ant fauna of Eritrea has been neglected for several decades.
    [Show full text]
  • Print This Article
    Sociobiology 68(2): e5941 (June, 2021) DOI: 10.13102/sociobiology.v68i2.5941 Sociobiology An international journal on social insects Research article - Ants Caste-specific phenotypic plasticity of Asian weaver ants: Revealing the allometric and non- allometric component of female caste system of Oecophylla smaragdina (hymenoptera: Formicidae) by using geometric morphometrics KV Mahima1, PP Anand1, S Seena1, K. Shameema1, EM Manogem2, Y Shibu Vardhanan1 1 - Biochemistry & Toxicology Division, Department of Zoology, University of Calicut, Kerala, India 2 - Insect Endocrinology Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Calicut, Kerala, India Article History Abstract In eusocial insects, particularly in ants, caste differentiation is extremely complicated Edited by when we rely on traditional taxonomy. In most species, the worker caste does not Evandro N. Silva, UEFS, Brazil Received 29 October 2020 display any distinct morphological characters neither the caste’s central division Initial acceptance 14 March 2021 according to their morphological size variations. We used a landmark-based geometric Final acceptance 12 April 2021 morphometric approach to quantify the morphological characteristics of female caste Publication date 31 May 2021 systems (queen, major and minor worker ant) of Oecophylla smaragdina. Our findings suggested that each caste has its unique shape and size. Especially in the worker caste, Keywords apart from the size variations, we can use the shape as a prominent tool for distinguishing Asian weaver ant, Caste system, Polyphenism, Oecophylla smaragdina, between them. The O. smaragdina exhibits a triphasic allometry pattern. Studying Geometric morphometric. the allometry and non-allometry components of each caste system revealed a highly complex size and shape relationship in the female caste systems.
    [Show full text]
  • Social Dominance and Reproductive Differentiation Mediated By
    © 2015. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd | The Journal of Experimental Biology (2015) 218, 1091-1098 doi:10.1242/jeb.118414 RESEARCH ARTICLE Social dominance and reproductive differentiation mediated by dopaminergic signaling in a queenless ant Yasukazu Okada1,2,*, Ken Sasaki3, Satoshi Miyazaki2,4, Hiroyuki Shimoji2, Kazuki Tsuji5 and Toru Miura2 ABSTRACT (i.e. the unequal sharing of reproductive opportunity) is widespread In social Hymenoptera with no morphological caste, a dominant female in various animal taxa (Sherman et al., 1995; birds, Emlen and becomes an egg layer, whereas subordinates become sterile helpers. Wrege, 1992; mammals, Jarvis, 1981; Keane et al., 1994; Nievergelt The physiological mechanism that links dominance rank and fecundity et al., 2000). In extreme cases, it can result in the reproductive is an essential part of the emergence of sterile females, which reflects division of labor, such as in social insects and naked mole rats the primitive phase of eusociality. Recent studies suggest that (Wilson, 1971; Sherman et al., 1995; Reeve and Keller, 2001). brain biogenic amines are correlated with the ranks in dominance In highly eusocial insects (honeybees, most ants and termites), hierarchy. However, the actual causality between aminergic systems developmental differentiation of morphological caste is the basis of and phenotype (i.e. fecundity and aggressiveness) is largely unknown social organization (Wilson, 1971). By contrast, there are due to the pleiotropic functions of amines (e.g. age-dependent morphologically casteless social insects (some wasps, bumblebees polyethism) and the scarcity of manipulation experiments. To clarify and queenless ants) in which the dominance hierarchy plays a central the causality among dominance ranks, amine levels and phenotypes, role in division of labor.
    [Show full text]