Lack of detectable nepotism in multiple-queen colonies of the fire ant Solenopsis invicta (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) |
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Authors: | Christopher J DeHeer Kenneth G Ross |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Entomology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602–2603, USA Fax: (706) 542–2279, e-mail: deheer@bscr.uga.edu, GE |
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Abstract: | Multiple-queen (polygyne) colonies of the introduced fire ant Solenopsis invicta present a paradox for kin selection theory. Egg-laying queens within these societies are, on average, unrelated to one another,
and the numbers of queens per colony are high, so that workers appear to raise new sexuals that are no more closely related
to them than are random individuals in the population. This paradox could be resolved if workers discriminate between related
and unrelated nestmate sexuals in important fitness-related contexts. This study examines the possibility of such nepotism
using methods that combine the following features: (1) multiple relevant behavioral assays, (2) colonies with an unmanipulated
family structure, (3) multiple genetic markers with no known phenotypic effects, and (4) a statistical technique for distinguishing
between nepotism and potentially confounding phenomena. We estimated relatedness between interactants in polygyne S. invicta colonies in two situations, workers tending egg-laying queens and workers feeding maturing winged queens. In neither case
did we detect a significant positive value of relatedness that would implicate nepotism. We argue that the non-nepotistic
strategies displayed by these ants reflect historical selection pressures experienced by native populations, in which nestmate
queens are highly related to one another. The markedly different genetic structure in native populations may favor the operation
of stronger higher-level selection that effectively opposes weaker individual-level selection for nepotistic interactions
within nests.
Received: 28 June 1996 / Accepted after revision: 6 October 1996 |
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Keywords: | Kin discrimination Kin selection Relatedness Fire ants Solenopsis invicta |
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