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Haney BR, Fewell JH. Ecological drivers and reproductive consequences of non-kin cooperation by ant queens. Oecologia 2018; 187:643-655. [PMID: 29691647 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-018-4148-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2018] [Accepted: 04/17/2018] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The fitness consequences of joining a group are highly dependent on ecological context, especially for non-kin. To assess the relationships between cooperation and environment, we examined variation in colony reproductive success for a harvester ant species that nests either solitarily or with multiple, unrelated queens, a social strategy known as primary polygyny. We measured the reproductive investment of colonies of solitary versus social nesting types at two sites, one with primarily single-queen colonies, and the other with a majority of polygynous nests. Our results were consistent with the hypothesis that cooperative nesting by unrelated ant queens is likely a selection response to difficult environments, rather than a strategy to maximize reproduction under favorable conditions. Fewer colonies at the primarily polygynous site reproduced than at the site with primarily single queen nests, and those that did had lower reproductive investment, as measured by number and total mass of reproductives. Assessment of ecological conditions also support the harsh environment hypothesis. Colony density in the multi-queen population was higher, and nearest neighbor distances were lower for non-reproducing than reproducing colonies. To more directly test the hypothesis that colony reproduction was ecologically constrained, we experimentally supplemented food resources for a subset of colonies at the primary polygyny site. Supplemented colonies increased reproductive investment levels to equal that of colonies at the single-queen population, further indicating that environmental pressures are severe where primary polygyny is dominant, and may drive the evolution of non-kin cooperation in this context.
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52
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Manfredini F, Brown MJF, Toth AL. Candidate genes for cooperation and aggression in the social wasp Polistes dominula. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2018; 204:449-463. [PMID: 29488013 PMCID: PMC5907630 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-018-1252-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2017] [Revised: 02/09/2018] [Accepted: 02/10/2018] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Cooperation and aggression are ubiquitous in social groups, and the genetic mechanisms underlying these behaviours are of great interest for understanding how social group formation is regulated and how it evolves. In this study, we used a candidate gene approach to investigate the patterns of expression of key genes for cooperation and aggression in the brain of a primitively eusocial wasp, Polistes dominula, during colony founding, when multiple foundresses can join the same nest and establish subtle hierarchies of dominance. We used a comparative approach to select candidate genes for cooperation and aggression looking at two previously published studies on global gene expression in wasps and ants. We tested the expression of these genes in P. dominula wasps that were either displaying aggressive behaviour (dominant and single foundresses) or cooperation (subordinate foundresses and workers) towards nestmates. One gene in particular, the egg yolk protein vitellogenin, known for its reproductive role in insects, displayed patterns of expression that strongly matched wasp social rank. We characterize the genomic context of vitellogenin by building a head co-expression gene network for P. dominula, and we discuss a potential role for vitellogenin as a mediator of social interactions in wasps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabio Manfredini
- School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, UK.
| | - Mark J F Brown
- School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, UK
| | - Amy L Toth
- Departments of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology and Entomology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, USA
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53
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Gilbert JDJ, Wells A, Simpson SJ. Skew in ovarian activation depends on domicile size in phyllode-glueing thrips. Sci Rep 2018; 8:3597. [PMID: 29483568 PMCID: PMC5832150 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-21635-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2016] [Accepted: 07/31/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Costs and benefits of group living are a fundamental topic in behavioural ecology. Resource availability affects individuals’ breeding prospects alone and in groups, as well as how reproduction is distributed within groups (“reproductive skew”). Here, in facultatively social thrips, we provide correlational evidence that breeding resources are associated with (1) whether solitary or social living is favoured, and (2) the degree of ovarian skew. Dunatothrips aneurae (Thysanoptera, Phlaeothripidae) cooperatively build silk “domiciles” on Australian Acacias, feeding exclusively from internal phyllode surfaces. Per capita productivity scaled differently with group size depending on domicile volume — females in small domiciles did better alone than in groups, whereas in large domiciles single and group-nesting females did equally well. Ovarian dissections revealed that in small domiciles some females were nonreproductive, indicating ovarian (i.e. reproductive) skew. Skew increased as domicile size decreased and group size increased. Breeders had smaller oocyte volume in smaller domiciles, especially those containing nonreproductives. These findings suggest group formation and reproductive skew in D. aneurae may be influenced by reproductive competition for breeding resources. Nonreproductive females in small domiciles may be reproductively suppressed, subfertile, or accumulating resources to reproduce.
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Affiliation(s)
- J D J Gilbert
- University of Hull, Cottingham Road, Hull, HU6 7RX, UK. .,Fowlers Gap Arid Zone Research Station, School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.
| | - A Wells
- ANIC, CSIRO, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - S J Simpson
- Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
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54
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Tibbetts EA, Fearon ML, Wong E, Huang ZY, Tinghitella RM. Rapid juvenile hormone downregulation in subordinate wasp queens facilitates stable cooperation. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 285:20172645. [PMID: 29436498 PMCID: PMC5829203 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.2645] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2017] [Accepted: 01/15/2018] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In many cooperatively breeding animals, subordinate group members have lower reproductive capacity than dominant group members. Theory suggests subordinates may downregulate their reproductive capacity because dominants punish subordinates who maintain high fertility. However, there is little direct experimental evidence that dominants cause physiological suppression in subordinates. Here, we experimentally test how social interactions influence subordinate reproductive hormones in Polistes dominula paper wasps. Polistes dominula queens commonly found nests in cooperative groups where the dominant queen is more fertile than the subordinate queen. In this study, we randomly assigned wasps to cooperative groups, assessed dominance behaviour during group formation, then measured levels of juvenile hormone (JH), a hormone that mediates Polistes fertility. Within three hours, lowest ranking subordinates had less JH than dominants or solitary controls, indicating that group formation caused rapid JH reduction in low-ranking subordinates. In a second experiment, we measured the behavioural consequences of experimentally increasing subordinate JH. Subordinates with high JH-titres received significantly more aggression than control subordinates or subordinates from groups where the dominant's JH was increased. These results suggest that dominants aggressively punished subordinates who attempted to maintain high fertility. Low-ranked subordinates may rapidly downregulate reproductive capacity to reduce costly social interactions with dominants. Rapid modulation of subordinate reproductive physiology may be an important adaptation to facilitate the formation of stable, cooperative groups.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Michelle L Fearon
- Ecology and Evolution, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Ellery Wong
- Ecology and Evolution, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Zachary Y Huang
- Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
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55
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Grinsted L, Field J. Biological markets in cooperative breeders: quantifying outside options. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2017.0904. [PMID: 28615504 PMCID: PMC5474085 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.0904] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2017] [Accepted: 05/18/2017] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
A major aim in evolutionary biology is to understand altruistic help and reproductive partitioning in cooperative societies, where subordinate helpers forego reproduction to rear dominant breeders' offspring. Traditional models of cooperation in these societies typically make a key assumption: that the only alternative to staying and helping is solitary breeding, an often unfeasible task. Using large-scale field experiments on paper wasps (Polistes dominula), we show that individuals have high-quality alternative nesting options available that offer fitness payoffs just as high as their actual chosen options, far exceeding payoffs from solitary breeding. Furthermore, joiners could not easily be replaced if they were removed experimentally, suggesting that it may be costly for dominants to reject them. Our results have implications for expected payoff distributions for cooperating individuals, and suggest that biological market theory, which incorporates partner choice and competition for partners, is necessary to understand helping behaviour in societies like that of P. dominula. Traditional models are likely to overestimate the incentive to stay and help, and therefore the amount of help provided, and may underestimate the size of reproductive concession required to retain subordinates. These findings are relevant for a wide range of cooperative breeders where there is dispersal between social groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lena Grinsted
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, John Maynard Smith Building, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK
| | - Jeremy Field
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, John Maynard Smith Building, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK
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56
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Shell WA, Rehan SM. The price of insurance: costs and benefits of worker production in a facultatively social bee. Behav Ecol 2017. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arx146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Wyatt A Shell
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, USA
| | - Sandra M Rehan
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, USA
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57
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Kingma SA. Direct benefits explain interspecific variation in helping behaviour among cooperatively breeding birds. Nat Commun 2017; 8:1094. [PMID: 29061969 PMCID: PMC5653647 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-01299-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2017] [Accepted: 09/07/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Kin selection theory provides one important explanation for seemingly altruistic helping behaviour by non-breeding subordinates in cooperative breeding animals. However, it cannot explain why helpers in many species provide energetically costly care to unrelated offspring. Here, I use comparative analyses to show that direct fitness benefits of helping others, associated with future opportunities to breed in the resident territory, are responsible for the widespread variation in helping effort (offspring food provisioning) and kin discrimination across cooperatively breeding birds. In species where prospects of territory inheritance are larger, subordinates provide more help, and, unlike subordinates that cannot inherit a territory, do not preferentially direct care towards related offspring. Thus, while kin selection can underlie helping behaviour in some species, direct benefits are much more important than currently recognised and explain why unrelated individuals provide substantial help in many bird species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sjouke A Kingma
- Behavioural & Physiological Ecology, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, P. O. Box 11103, Groningen, 9700 CC, The Netherlands.
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58
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Kennedy P, Baron G, Qiu B, Freitak D, Helanterä H, Hunt ER, Manfredini F, O'Shea-Wheller T, Patalano S, Pull CD, Sasaki T, Taylor D, Wyatt CDR, Sumner S. Deconstructing Superorganisms and Societies to Address Big Questions in Biology. Trends Ecol Evol 2017; 32:861-872. [PMID: 28899581 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2017.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2017] [Revised: 07/31/2017] [Accepted: 08/03/2017] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Social insect societies are long-standing models for understanding social behaviour and evolution. Unlike other advanced biological societies (such as the multicellular body), the component parts of social insect societies can be easily deconstructed and manipulated. Recent methodological and theoretical innovations have exploited this trait to address an expanded range of biological questions. We illustrate the broadening range of biological insight coming from social insect biology with four examples. These new frontiers promote open-minded, interdisciplinary exploration of one of the richest and most complex of biological phenomena: sociality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Kennedy
- Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom
| | - Gemma Baron
- School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham TW20 0EX, United Kingdom
| | - Bitao Qiu
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Dalial Freitak
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biosciences, University of Helsinki, Viikinkaari 1, P.O. Box 65, 00014 University of Helsinki, Finland
| | - Heikki Helanterä
- Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biosciences, University of Helsinki, Viikinkaari 1, P.O. Box 65, 00014 University of Helsinki, Finland
| | - Edmund R Hunt
- Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom
| | - Fabio Manfredini
- School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham TW20 0EX, United Kingdom
| | - Thomas O'Shea-Wheller
- Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom
| | | | - Christopher D Pull
- School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham TW20 0EX, United Kingdom; IST Austria (Institute of Science and Technology Austria), Am Campus 1, A-3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | - Takao Sasaki
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, The Tinbergen Building, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PS, United Kingdom
| | - Daisy Taylor
- Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom
| | - Christopher D R Wyatt
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), The Barcelona Institute for Science and Technology, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain; Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Seirian Sumner
- Life Sciences Building, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom; Current address: Centre for Biodiversity & Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution & Environment, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom.
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59
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Grinsted L, Field J. Market forces influence helping behaviour in cooperatively breeding paper wasps. Nat Commun 2017; 8:13750. [PMID: 28117836 PMCID: PMC5286204 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms13750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/29/2016] [Accepted: 10/28/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Biological market theory is potentially useful for understanding helping behaviour in animal societies. It predicts that competition for trading partners will affect the value of commodities exchanged. It has gained empirical support in cooperative breeders, where subordinates help dominant breeders in exchange for group membership, but so far without considering one crucial aspect: outside options. We find support for a biological market in paper wasps, Polistes dominula. We first show that females have a choice of cooperative partners. Second, by manipulating entire subpopulations in the field, we increase the supply of outside options for subordinates, freeing up suitable nesting spots and providing additional nesting partners. We predicted that by intensifying competition for help, our manipulation would force dominants to accept a lower price for group membership. As expected, subordinates reduce their foraging effort following our treatments. We conclude that to accurately predict the amount of help provided, social units cannot be viewed in isolation: the surrounding market must also be considered. In cooperatively breeding species, subordinates help to raise the dominant breeders' offspring in return for benefits associated with group membership. Here, Grinsted and Field show that the amount of help provided by subordinate paper wasps depends on the availability of alternative nesting options, as predicted by biological market theory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lena Grinsted
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, John Maynard Smith Building, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK
| | - Jeremy Field
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, John Maynard Smith Building, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK
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60
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Abstract
The sterile worker castes found in the colonies of social insects are often cited as archetypal examples of altruism in nature. The challenge is to explain why losing the ability to mate has evolved as a superior strategy for transmitting genes into future generations. We propose that two conditions are necessary for the evolution of sterility: completely overlapping generations and monogamy. A review of the literature indicates that when these two conditions are met we consistently observe the evolution of sterile helpers. We explain the theory and evidence behind these ideas, and discuss the importance of ecology in predicting whether sterility will evolve using examples from social birds, mammals, and insects. In doing so, we offer an explanation for the extraordinary lifespans of some cooperative species which hint at ways in which we can unlock the secrets of long life.
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61
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Field J, Leadbeater E. Cooperation between non-relatives in a primitively eusocial paper wasp, Polistes dominula. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2016; 371:20150093. [PMID: 26729932 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2015.0093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In cooperatively breeding vertebrates, the existence of individuals that help to raise the offspring of non-relatives is well established, but unrelated helpers are less well known in the social insects. Eusocial insect groups overwhelmingly consist of close relatives, so populations where unrelated helpers are common are intriguing. Here, we focus on Polistes dominula-the best-studied primitively eusocial wasp, and a species in which nesting with non-relatives is not only present but frequent. We address two major questions: why individuals should choose to nest with non-relatives, and why such individuals participate in the costly rearing of unrelated offspring. Polistes dominula foundresses produce more offspring of their own as subordinates than when they nest independently, providing a potential explanation for co-founding by non-relatives. There is some evidence that unrelated subordinates tailor their behaviour towards direct fitness, while the role of recognition errors in generating unrelated co-foundresses is less clear. Remarkably, the remote but potentially highly rewarding chance of inheriting the dominant position appears to strongly influence behaviour, suggesting that primitively eusocial insects may have much more in common with their social vertebrate counterparts than has commonly been thought.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy Field
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, John Maynard Smith Building, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK
| | - Ellouise Leadbeater
- School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX, UK
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62
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Riehl C, Frederickson ME. Cheating and punishment in cooperative animal societies. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2016; 371:20150090. [PMID: 26729930 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2015.0090] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Cheaters-genotypes that gain a selective advantage by taking the benefits of the social contributions of others while avoiding the costs of cooperating-are thought to pose a major threat to the evolutionary stability of cooperative societies. In order for cheaters to undermine cooperation, cheating must be an adaptive strategy: cheaters must have higher fitness than cooperators, and their behaviour must reduce the fitness of their cooperative partners. It is frequently suggested that cheating is not adaptive because cooperators have evolved mechanisms to punish these behaviours, thereby reducing the fitness of selfish individuals. However, a simpler hypothesis is that such societies arise precisely because cooperative strategies have been favoured over selfish ones-hence, behaviours that have been interpreted as 'cheating' may not actually result in increased fitness, even when they go unpunished. Here, we review the empirical evidence for cheating behaviours in animal societies, including cooperatively breeding vertebrates and social insects, and we ask whether such behaviours are primarily limited by punishment. Our review suggests that both cheating and punishment are probably rarer than often supposed. Uncooperative individuals typically have lower, not higher, fitness than cooperators; and when evidence suggests that cheating may be adaptive, it is often limited by frequency-dependent selection rather than by punishment. When apparently punitive behaviours do occur, it remains an open question whether they evolved in order to limit cheating, or whether they arose before the evolution of cooperation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christina Riehl
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, 106A Guyot Hall, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Megan E Frederickson
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2
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63
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Korb J. Why do social insect queens live so long? Approaches to unravel the sociality-aging puzzle. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2016; 16:104-107. [PMID: 27720043 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2016.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2016] [Revised: 05/02/2016] [Accepted: 06/07/2016] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Social insects are characterized by an apparent reshaping of the fecundity/longevity trade-off with sociality. Currently, we have only sketchy information about the potential underlying causes and mechanisms of aging and senescence which in addition are restricted to few model insect organisms (mainly the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster and the honey bee Apis mellifera). How can we gain a more thorough understanding how sociality shapes senescence and the fecundity/longevity trade-off? By reviewing available literature, I propose a comparative approach that offers the opportunity to gain fundamental insights into uncovering the basis for this life history trade-off and its reshaping with sociality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith Korb
- Evolutionary Biology & Ecology, University of Freiburg, Germany.
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64
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Downing PA, Cornwallis CK, Griffin AS. Sex, long life and the evolutionary transition to cooperative breeding in birds. Proc Biol Sci 2016; 282:20151663. [PMID: 26400743 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.1663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Long life is a typical feature of individuals living in cooperative societies. One explanation is that group living lowers mortality, which selects for longer life. Alternatively, long life may make the evolution of cooperation more likely by ensuring a long breeding tenure, making helping behaviour and queuing for breeding positions worthwhile. The benefit of queuing will, however, depend on whether individuals gain indirect fitness benefits while helping, which is determined by female promiscuity. Where promiscuity is high and therefore the indirect fitness benefits of helping are low, cooperation can still be favoured by an even longer life span. We present the results of comparative analyses designed to test the likelihood of a causal relationship between longevity and cooperative breeding by reconstructing ancestral states of cooperative breeding across birds, and by examining the effect of female promiscuity on the relationship between these two traits. We found that long life makes the evolution of cooperation more likely and that promiscuous cooperative species are exceptionally long lived. These results make sense of promiscuity in cooperative breeders and clarify the importance of life-history traits in the evolution of cooperative breeding, illustrating that cooperation can evolve via the combination of indirect and direct fitness benefits.
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65
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Gadagkar R. Evolution of social behaviour in the primitively eusocial wasp Ropalidia marginata: do we need to look beyond kin selection? Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2016; 371:20150094. [PMID: 26729933 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2015.0094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Ropalidia marginata is a primitively eusocial wasp widely distributed in peninsular India. Although solitary females found a small proportion of nests, the vast majority of new nests are founded by small groups of females. In such multiple foundress nests, a single dominant female functions as the queen and lays eggs, while the rest function as sterile workers and care for the queen's brood. Previous attempts to understand the evolution of social behaviour and altruism in this species have employed inclusive fitness theory (kin selection) as a guiding framework. Although inclusive fitness theory is quite successful in explaining the high propensity of the wasps to found nests in groups, several features of their social organization suggest that forces other than kin selection may also have played a significant role in the evolution of this species. These features include lowering of genetic relatedness owing to polyandry and serial polygyny, nest foundation by unrelated individuals, acceptance of young non-nest-mates, a combination of well-developed nest-mate recognition and lack of intra-colony kin recognition, a combination of meek and docile queens and a decentralized self-organized work force, long reproductive queues with cryptic heir designates and conflict-free queen succession, all resulting in extreme intra-colony cooperation and inter-colony conflict.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raghavendra Gadagkar
- Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
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66
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Barker JL, Loope KJ, Reeve HK. Asymmetry within social groups: division of labour and intergroup competition. J Evol Biol 2015; 29:560-71. [PMID: 26663312 PMCID: PMC4784174 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2015] [Revised: 10/22/2015] [Accepted: 12/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Social animals vary in their ability to compete with group members over shared resources and also vary in their cooperative efforts to produce these resources. Competition among groups can promote within-group cooperation, but many existing models of intergroup cooperation do not explicitly account for observations that group members invest differentially in cooperation and that there are often within-group competitive or power asymmetries. We present a game theoretic model of intergroup competition that investigates how such asymmetries affect within-group cooperation. In this model, group members adopt one of two roles, with relative competitive efficiency and the number of individuals varying between roles. Players in each role make simultaneous, coevolving decisions. The model predicts that although intergroup competition increases cooperative contributions to group resources by both roles, contributions are predominantly from individuals in the less competitively efficient role, whereas individuals in the more competitively efficient role generally gain the larger share of these resources. When asymmetry in relative competitive efficiency is greater, a group's per capita cooperation (averaged across both roles) is higher, due to increased cooperation from the competitively inferior individuals. For extreme asymmetry in relative competitive efficiency, per capita cooperation is highest in groups with a single competitively superior individual and many competitively inferior individuals, because the latter acquiesce and invest in cooperation rather than within-group competition. These predictions are consistent with observed features of many societies, such as monogynous Hymenoptera with many workers and caste dimorphism.
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Affiliation(s)
- J L Barker
- Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - K J Loope
- Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - H K Reeve
- Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
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67
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Abstract
Why do most animals live solitarily, while complex social life is restricted to a few cooperatively breeding vertebrates and social insects? Here, we synthesize concepts and theories in social evolution and discuss its underlying ecological causes. Social evolution can be partitioned into (a) formation of stable social groups, (b) evolution of helping, and (c) transition to a new evolutionary level. Stable social groups rarely evolve due to competition over food and/or reproduction. Food competition is overcome in social insects with central-place foraging or bonanza-type food resources, whereas competition over reproduction commonly occurs because staying individuals are rarely sterile. Hence, the evolution of helping is shaped by direct and indirect fitness options and helping is only altruism if it reduces the helper's direct fitness. The helper's capability to gain direct fitness also creates within-colony conflict. This prevents transition to a new evolutionary level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith Korb
- Department of Evolutionary Biology & Ecology, University of Freiburg, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany;
| | - Jürgen Heinze
- Institute of Zoology/Evolutionary Biology, University of Regensburg, D-93040 Regensburg, Germany;
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68
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Höcherl N, Tautz J. Nesting behavior of the paper waspPolistes dominulain Central Europe—a flexible system for expanding into new areas. Ecosphere 2015. [DOI: 10.1890/es15-00254.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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69
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Jungwirth A, Taborsky M. First- and second-order sociality determine survival and reproduction in cooperative cichlids. Proc Biol Sci 2015; 282:20151971. [PMID: 26582022 PMCID: PMC4685815 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.1971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2015] [Accepted: 10/20/2015] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Cooperative breeders serve as a model to study the evolution of cooperation, where costs and benefits of helping are typically scrutinized at the level of group membership. However, cooperation is often observed in multi-level social organizations involving interactions among individuals at various levels. Here, we argue that a full understanding of the adaptive value of cooperation and the evolution of complex social organization requires identifying the effect of different levels of social organization on direct and indirect fitness components. Our long-term field data show that in the cooperatively breeding, colonial cichlid fish Neolamprologus pulcher, both large group size and high colony density significantly raised group persistence. Neither group size nor density affected survival at the individual level, but they had interactive effects on reproductive output; large group size raised productivity when local population density was low, whereas in contrast, small groups were more productive at high densities. Fitness estimates of individually marked fish revealed indirect fitness benefits associated with staying in large groups. Inclusive fitness, however, was not significantly affected by group size, because the direct fitness component was not increased in larger groups. Together, our findings highlight that the reproductive output of groups may be affected in opposite directions by different levels of sociality, and that complex forms of sociality and costly cooperation may evolve in the absence of large indirect fitness benefits and the influence of kin selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arne Jungwirth
- Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Wohlenstrasse 50a, Hinterkappelen 3032, Switzerland
| | - Michael Taborsky
- Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Wohlenstrasse 50a, Hinterkappelen 3032, Switzerland
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70
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Elgar MA. Integrating insights across diverse taxa: challenges for understanding social evolution. Front Ecol Evol 2015. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2015.00124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
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71
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Yosiaki Itô 1930–2015. POPUL ECOL 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s10144-015-0514-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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72
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Sheehan MJ, Botero CA, Hendry TA, Sedio BE, Jandt JM, Weiner S, Toth AL, Tibbetts EA. Different axes of environmental variation explain the presence vs. extent of cooperative nest founding associations in Polistes paper wasps. Ecol Lett 2015; 18:1057-67. [PMID: 26248800 DOI: 10.1111/ele.12488] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2015] [Accepted: 07/08/2015] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Ecological constraints on independent breeding are recognised as major drivers of cooperative breeding across diverse lineages. How the prevalence and degree of cooperative breeding relates to ecological variation remains unresolved. Using a large data set of cooperative nesting in Polistes wasps we demonstrate that different aspects of cooperative breeding are likely to be driven by different aspects of climate. Whether or not a species forms cooperative groups is associated with greater short-term temperature fluctuations. In contrast, the number of cooperative foundresses increases in more benign environments with warmer, wetter conditions. The same data set reveals that intraspecific responses to climate variation do not mirror genus-wide trends and instead are highly heterogeneous among species. Collectively these data suggest that the ecological drivers that lead to the origin or loss of cooperation are different from those that influence the extent of its expression within populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J Sheehan
- Integrative Biology and Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.,Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA.,Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
| | - Carlos A Botero
- Department of Biology, Washington University in Saint Louis, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA.,Initiative for Biological Complexity, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA
| | - Tory A Hendry
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA.,Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
| | - Brian E Sedio
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA.,Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancon, Panamá
| | - Jennifer M Jandt
- Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA
| | - Susan Weiner
- Biological, Chemical and Physical Sciences, Roosevelt University, Chicago, IL, 60605, USA
| | - Amy L Toth
- Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA
| | - Elizabeth A Tibbetts
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
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73
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Green JP, Cant MA, Field J. Using social parasitism to test reproductive skew models in a primitively eusocial wasp. Proc Biol Sci 2015; 281:20141206. [PMID: 24990668 PMCID: PMC4100523 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2014.1206] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Remarkable variation exists in the distribution of reproduction (skew) among members of cooperatively breeding groups, both within and between species. Reproductive skew theory has provided an important framework for understanding this variation. In the primitively eusocial Hymenoptera, two models have been routinely tested: concessions models, which assume complete control of reproduction by a dominant individual, and tug-of-war models, which assume on-going competition among group members over reproduction. Current data provide little support for either model, but uncertainty about the ability of individuals to detect genetic relatedness and difficulties in identifying traits conferring competitive ability mean that the relative importance of concessions versus tug-of-war remains unresolved. Here, we suggest that the use of social parasitism to generate meaningful variation in key social variables represents a valuable opportunity to explore the mechanisms underpinning reproductive skew within the social Hymenoptera. We present a direct test of concessions and tug-of-war models in the paper wasp Polistes dominulus by exploiting pronounced changes in relatedness and power structures that occur following replacement of the dominant by a congeneric social parasite. Comparisons of skew in parasitized and unparasitized colonies are consistent with a tug-of-war over reproduction within P. dominulus groups, but provide no evidence for reproductive concessions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan P Green
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, John Maynard Smith Building, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK
| | - Michael A Cant
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn TR10 9EZ, UK
| | - Jeremy Field
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, John Maynard Smith Building, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK
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74
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Abstract
I present evidence that humans have evolved convergently to social insects with regard to a large suite of social, ecological, and reproductive phenotypes. Convergences between humans and social insects include: (1) groups with genetically and environmentally defined structures; (2) extensive divisions of labor; (3) specialization of a relatively restricted set of females for reproduction, with enhanced fertility; (4) extensive extramaternal care; (5) within-group food sharing; (6) generalized diets composed of high-nutrient-density food; (7) solicitous juveniles, but high rates of infanticide; (8) ecological dominance; (9) enhanced colonizing abilities; and (10) collective, cooperative decision-making. Most of these convergent phenotypic adaptations stem from reorganization of key life-history trade-offs due to behavioral, physiological, and life-historical specializations. Despite their extensive socioreproductive overlap with social insects, humans differ with regard to the central aspect of eusociality: reproductive division of labor. This difference may be underpinned by the high energetic costs of producing offspring with large brains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernard Crespi
- Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, V5A 1S6,
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75
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Nonacs P, Richards MH. How (not) to review papers on inclusive fitness. Trends Ecol Evol 2015; 30:235-7. [PMID: 25804868 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2015.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2014] [Revised: 02/21/2015] [Accepted: 02/24/2015] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Peter Nonacs
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
| | - Miriam H Richards
- Department of Biological Sciences, Brock University, St Catharines, ON L2S 3A1, Canada
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76
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Rehan SM, Richards MH, Adams M, Schwarz MP. The costs and benefits of sociality in a facultatively social bee. Anim Behav 2014. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2014.08.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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77
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Prager SM. Comparison of social and solitary nesting carpenter bees in sympatry reveals no advantage to social nesting. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/bij.12395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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78
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Kingma SA, Santema P, Taborsky M, Komdeur J. Group augmentation and the evolution of cooperation. Trends Ecol Evol 2014; 29:476-84. [PMID: 24996259 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2014.05.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2013] [Revised: 05/02/2014] [Accepted: 05/30/2014] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
The group augmentation (GA) hypothesis states that if helpers in cooperatively breeding animals raise the reproductive success of the group, the benefits of living in a resulting larger group--improved survival or future reproductive success--favour the evolution of seemingly altruistic helping behaviour. The applicability of the GA hypothesis remains debatable, however, partly owing to the lack of a clear conceptual framework and a shortage of appropriate empirical studies. We conceptualise here the GA hypothesis and illustrate that benefits of GA can accrue via different evolutionary mechanisms that relate closely to well-supported general concepts of group living and cooperation. These benefits reflect several plausible explanations for the evolutionary maintenance of helping behaviour in cooperatively breeding animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sjouke A Kingma
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK; Behavioural Ecology and Self-Organization Group, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands; Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Vogelwarte Radolfzell, Radolfzell, Germany.
| | - Peter Santema
- Behavioural Ecology and Self-Organization Group, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands; Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Michael Taborsky
- Department of Behavioral Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Hinterkappelen, Switzerland
| | - Jan Komdeur
- Behavioural Ecology and Self-Organization Group, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
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79
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Holman L. Conditional helping and evolutionary transitions to eusociality and cooperative breeding. Behav Ecol 2014. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/aru100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
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80
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Boomsma JJ, Huszár DB, Pedersen JS. The evolution of multiqueen breeding in eusocial lineages with permanent physically differentiated castes. Anim Behav 2014. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2014.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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81
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82
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Signorotti L, Cappa F, d’Ettorre P, Cervo R. Novel insights into the ontogeny of nestmate recognition in Polistes social wasps. PLoS One 2014; 9:e97024. [PMID: 24806637 PMCID: PMC4013106 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0097024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2014] [Accepted: 04/15/2014] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
The importance of early experience in animals' life is unquestionable, and imprinting-like phenomena may shape important aspects of behaviour. Early learning typically occurs during a sensitive period, which restricts crucial processes of information storage to a specific developmental phase. The characteristics of the sensitive period have been largely investigated in vertebrates, because of their complexity and plasticity, both in behaviour and neurophysiology, but early learning occurs also in invertebrates. In social insects, early learning appears to influence important social behaviours such as nestmate recognition. Yet, the mechanisms underlying recognition systems are not fully understood. It is currently believed that Polistes social wasps are able to discriminate nestmates from non-nestmates following the perception of olfactory cues present on the paper of their nest, which are learned during a strict sensitive period, immediately after emergence. Here, through differential odour experience experiments, we show that workers of Polistes dominula develop correct nestmate recognition abilities soon after emergence even in absence of what have been so far considered the necessary cues (the chemicals spread on nest paper). P. dominula workers were exposed for the first four days of adult life to paper fragments from their nest, or from a foreign conspecific nest or to a neutral condition. Wasps were then transferred to their original nests where recognition abilities were tested. Our results show that wasps do not alter their recognition ability if exposed only to nest material, or in absence of nest material, during the early phase of adult life. It thus appears that the nest paper is not used as a source of recognition cues to be learned in a specific time window, although we discuss possible alternative explanations. Our study provides a novel perspective for the study of the ontogeny of nestmate recognition in Polistes wasps and in other social insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa Signorotti
- Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology (LEEC), University of Paris 13- Sorbonne Paris Cité, Villetaneuse, France
- Dipartimento di Biologia, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
| | - Federico Cappa
- Dipartimento di Biologia, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
| | - Patrizia d’Ettorre
- Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology (LEEC), University of Paris 13- Sorbonne Paris Cité, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Rita Cervo
- Dipartimento di Biologia, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
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83
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Thompson FJ, Donaldson L, Johnstone RA, Field J, Cant MA. Dominant aggression as a deterrent signal in paper wasps. Behav Ecol 2014. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/aru063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
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84
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Bourke AFG. Hamilton's rule and the causes of social evolution. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2014; 369:20130362. [PMID: 24686934 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2013.0362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Hamilton's rule is a central theorem of inclusive fitness (kin selection) theory and predicts that social behaviour evolves under specific combinations of relatedness, benefit and cost. This review provides evidence for Hamilton's rule by presenting novel syntheses of results from two kinds of study in diverse taxa, including cooperatively breeding birds and mammals and eusocial insects. These are, first, studies that empirically parametrize Hamilton's rule in natural populations and, second, comparative phylogenetic analyses of the genetic, life-history and ecological correlates of sociality. Studies parametrizing Hamilton's rule are not rare and demonstrate quantitatively that (i) altruism (net loss of direct fitness) occurs even when sociality is facultative, (ii) in most cases, altruism is under positive selection via indirect fitness benefits that exceed direct fitness costs and (iii) social behaviour commonly generates indirect benefits by enhancing the productivity or survivorship of kin. Comparative phylogenetic analyses show that cooperative breeding and eusociality are promoted by (i) high relatedness and monogamy and, potentially, by (ii) life-history factors facilitating family structure and high benefits of helping and (iii) ecological factors generating low costs of social behaviour. Overall, the focal studies strongly confirm the predictions of Hamilton's rule regarding conditions for social evolution and their causes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew F G Bourke
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, , Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK
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85
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Leadbeater E, Dapporto L, Turillazzi S, Field J. Available kin recognition cues may explain why wasp behavior reflects relatedness to nest mates. Behav Ecol 2013. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/art113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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86
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87
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88
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Donaldson L, Thompson FJ, Field J, Cant MA. Do paper wasps negotiate over helping effort? Behav Ecol 2013. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/art089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
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89
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Tibbetts EA, Injaian A. Preferential phenotypic association linked with cooperation in paper wasps. J Evol Biol 2013; 26:2350-8. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2013] [Revised: 07/16/2013] [Accepted: 07/17/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- E. A. Tibbetts
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; University of Michigan; Ann Arbor MI USA
| | - A. Injaian
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; University of Michigan; Ann Arbor MI USA
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90
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McLeod DV, Wild G. ECOLOGICAL CONSTRAINTS INFLUENCE THE EMERGENCE OF COOPERATIVE BREEDING WHEN POPULATION DYNAMICS DETERMINE THE FITNESS OF HELPERS. Evolution 2013; 67:3221-32. [DOI: 10.1111/evo.12188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2013] [Accepted: 06/04/2013] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- David V. McLeod
- Department of Applied Mathematics The University of Western Ontario 1151 Richmond Street London Ontario Canada N6A 5B7
| | - Geoff Wild
- Department of Applied Mathematics The University of Western Ontario 1151 Richmond Street London Ontario Canada N6A 5B7
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91
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92
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Luchetti A, Dedeine F, Velonà A, Mantovani B. Extreme genetic mixing within colonies of the wood-dwelling termiteKalotermes flavicollis(Isoptera, Kalotermitidae). Mol Ecol 2013; 22:3391-402. [DOI: 10.1111/mec.12302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2012] [Revised: 02/20/2013] [Accepted: 02/21/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- A. Luchetti
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche; Geologiche e Ambientali - Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna; via Selmi 3 Bologna 40126 Italy
| | - F. Dedeine
- Institut de Recherche sur la Biologie de l'Insecte; UMR CNRS 7261; Faculté des Sciences; Université de Tours; Parc de Grandmont Tours 37 200 France
| | - A. Velonà
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche; Geologiche e Ambientali - Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna; via Selmi 3 Bologna 40126 Italy
| | - B. Mantovani
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche; Geologiche e Ambientali - Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna; via Selmi 3 Bologna 40126 Italy
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93
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Boomsma JJ. Beyond promiscuity: mate-choice commitments in social breeding. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2013; 368:20120050. [PMID: 23339241 PMCID: PMC3576584 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2012.0050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Obligate eusociality with distinct caste phenotypes has evolved from strictly monogamous sub-social ancestors in ants, some bees, some wasps and some termites. This implies that no lineage reached the most advanced form of social breeding, unless helpers at the nest gained indirect fitness values via siblings that were identical to direct fitness via offspring. The complete lack of re-mating promiscuity equalizes sex-specific variances in reproductive success. Later, evolutionary developments towards multiple queen-mating retained lifetime commitment between sexual partners, but reduced male variance in reproductive success relative to female's, similar to the most advanced vertebrate cooperative breeders. Here, I (i) discuss some of the unique and highly peculiar mating system adaptations of eusocial insects; (ii) address ambiguities that remained after earlier reviews and extend the monogamy logic to the evolution of soldier castes; (iii) evaluate the evidence for indirect fitness benefits driving the dynamics of (in)vertebrate cooperative breeding, while emphasizing the fundamental differences between obligate eusociality and cooperative breeding; (iv) infer that lifetime commitment is a major driver towards higher levels of organization in bodies, colonies and mutualisms. I argue that evolutionary informative definitions of social systems that separate direct and indirect fitness benefits facilitate transparency when testing inclusive fitness theory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacobus J Boomsma
- Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark.
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94
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Ferreira PG, Patalano S, Chauhan R, Ffrench-Constant R, Gabaldón T, Guigó R, Sumner S. Transcriptome analyses of primitively eusocial wasps reveal novel insights into the evolution of sociality and the origin of alternative phenotypes. Genome Biol 2013; 14:R20. [PMID: 23442883 PMCID: PMC4053794 DOI: 10.1186/gb-2013-14-2-r20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 105] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2012] [Accepted: 02/26/2013] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Understanding how alternative phenotypes arise from the same genome is a major challenge in modern biology. Eusociality in insects requires the evolution of two alternative phenotypes - workers, who sacrifice personal reproduction, and queens, who realize that reproduction. Extensive work on honeybees and ants has revealed the molecular basis of derived queen and worker phenotypes in highly eusocial lineages, but we lack equivalent deep-level analyses of wasps and of primitively eusocial species, the latter of which can reveal how phenotypic decoupling first occurs in the early stages of eusocial evolution. RESULTS We sequenced 20 Gbp of transcriptomes derived from brains of different behavioral castes of the primitively eusocial tropical paper wasp Polistes canadensis. Surprisingly, 75% of the 2,442 genes differentially expressed between phenotypes were novel, having no significant homology with described sequences. Moreover, 90% of these novel genes were significantly upregulated in workers relative to queens. Differential expression of novel genes in the early stages of sociality may be important in facilitating the evolution of worker behavioral complexity in eusocial evolution. We also found surprisingly low correlation in the identity and direction of expression of differentially expressed genes across similar phenotypes in different social lineages, supporting the idea that social evolution in different lineages requires substantial de novo rewiring of molecular pathways. CONCLUSIONS These genomic resources for aculeate wasps and first transcriptome-wide insights into the origin of castes bring us closer to a more general understanding of eusocial evolution and how phenotypic diversity arises from the same genome.
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95
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Zöttl M, Frommen JG, Taborsky M. Group size adjustment to ecological demand in a cooperative breeder. Proc Biol Sci 2013; 280:20122772. [PMID: 23390105 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2012.2772] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Environmental factors can determine which group size will maximize the fitness of group members. This is particularly important in cooperative breeders, where group members often serve different purposes. Experimental studies are yet lacking to check whether ecologically mediated need for help will change the propensity of dominant group members to accept immigrants. Here, we manipulated the perceived risk of predation for dominant breeders of the cooperatively breeding cichlid fish Neolamprologus pulcher to test their response to unrelated and previously unknown immigrants. Potential immigrants were more readily accepted if groups were exposed to fish predators or egg predators than to herbivorous fish or control situations lacking predation risk. Our data are consistent with both risk dilution and helping effects. Egg predators were presented before spawning, which might suggest that the fish adjust acceptance rates also to a potential future threat. Dominant group members of N. pulcher apparently consider both present and future need of help based on ecological demand. This suggests that acceptance of immigrants and, more generally, tolerance of group members on demand could be a widespread response to ecological conditions in cooperatively breeding animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Markus Zöttl
- Department of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, 3032 Hinterkappelen, Switzerland.
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96
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Green JP, Leadbeater E, Carruthers JM, Rosser NS, Lucas ER, Field J. Clypeal patterning in the paper wasp Polistes dominulus: no evidence of adaptive value in the wild. Behav Ecol 2013. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ars226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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97
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Zöttl M, Heg D, Chervet N, Taborsky M. Kinship reduces alloparental care in cooperative cichlids where helpers pay-to-stay. Nat Commun 2013; 4:1341. [DOI: 10.1038/ncomms2344] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2012] [Accepted: 11/29/2012] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
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98
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Purcell J, Chapuisat M. BIDIRECTIONAL SHIFTS IN COLONY QUEEN NUMBER IN A SOCIALLY POLYMORPHIC ANT POPULATION. Evolution 2012; 67:1169-80. [DOI: 10.1111/evo.12010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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99
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Brand N, Chapuisat M. Born to be bee, fed to be worker? The caste system of a primitively eusocial insect. Front Zool 2012; 9:35. [PMID: 23216648 PMCID: PMC3538649 DOI: 10.1186/1742-9994-9-35] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2012] [Accepted: 11/17/2012] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED INTRODUCTION Primitively eusocial halictid bees are excellent systems to study the origin of eusociality, because all individuals have retained the ancestral ability to breed independently. In the sweat bee Halictus scabiosae, foundresses overwinter, establish nests and rear a first brood by mass-provisioning each offspring with pollen and nectar. The mothers may thus manipulate the phenotype of their offspring by restricting their food provisions. The first brood females generally help their mother to rear a second brood of males and gynes that become foundresses. However, the first brood females may also reproduce in their maternal or in other nests, or possibly enter early diapause. Here, we examined if the behavioural specialization of the first and second brood females was associated with between-brood differences in body size, energetic reserves and pollen provisions. RESULTS The patterns of variation in adult body size, weight, fat content and food provisioned to the first and second brood indicate that H. scabiosae has dimorphic females. The first-brood females were significantly smaller, lighter and had lower fat reserves than the second-brood females and foundresses. The first-brood females were also less variable in size and fat content, and developed on homogeneously smaller pollen provisions. Foundresses were larger than gynes of the previous year, suggesting that small females were less likely to survive the winter. CONCLUSIONS The marked size dimorphism between females produced in the first and second brood and the consistently smaller pollen provisions provided to the first brood suggest that the first brood females are channelled into a helper role during their pre-imaginal development. As a large body size is needed for successful hibernation, the mother may promote helping in her first brood offspring by restricting their food provisions. This pattern supports the hypothesis that parental manipulation may contribute to promote worker behaviour in primitively eusocial halictids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nayuta Brand
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
| | - Michel Chapuisat
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
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Tarnita CE, Taubes CH, Nowak MA. Evolutionary construction by staying together and coming together. J Theor Biol 2012. [PMID: 23206384 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2012.11.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
The evolutionary trajectory of life on earth is one of increasing size and complexity. Yet the standard equations of evolutionary dynamics describe mutation and selection among similar organisms that compete on the same level of organization. Here we begin to outline a mathematical theory that might help to explore how evolution can be constructive, how natural selection can lead from lower to higher levels of organization. We distinguish two fundamental operations, which we call 'staying together' and 'coming together'. Staying together means that individuals form larger units by not separating after reproduction, while coming together means that independent individuals form aggregates. Staying together can lead to specialization and division of labor, but the developmental program must evolve in the basic unit. Coming together can be creative by combining units with different properties. Both operations have been identified in the context of multicellularity, but they have been treated very similarly. Here we point out that staying together and coming together can be found at every level of biological construction and moreover that they face different evolutionary problems. The distinction is particularly clear in the context of cooperation and defection. For staying together the stability of cooperation takes the form of a developmental error threshold, while coming together leads to evolutionary games and requires a mechanism for the evolution of cooperation. We use our models to discuss simple aspects of the evolution of protocells, eukarya, multi-cellularity and animal societies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Corina E Tarnita
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA.
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