Skip to main content
bioRxiv
  • Home
  • About
  • Submit
  • ALERTS / RSS
Advanced Search
New Results

The evolution of queen control over worker reproduction in the social Hymenoptera

Jason Olejarz, Carl Veller, Martin A. Nowak
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/110973
Jason Olejarz
aProgram for Evolutionary Dynamics, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 USA
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Carl Veller
aProgram for Evolutionary Dynamics, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 USA
bDepartment of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 USA
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Martin A. Nowak
aProgram for Evolutionary Dynamics, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 USA
bDepartment of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 USA
cDepartment of Mathematics, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 USA
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • Abstract
  • Full Text
  • Info/History
  • Metrics
  • Preview PDF
Loading

Abstract

A trademark of eusocial insect species is reproductive division of labor, in which workers forego their own reproduction while the queen produces almost all offspring. The presence of the queen is key for maintaining social harmony, but the specific role of the queen in the evolution of eusociality remains unclear. A long-discussed scenario is that a queen either behaviorally or chemically sterilizes her workers. However, the demographic and ecological conditions that enable such manipulation are unknown. Accordingly, we propose a simple model of evolutionary dynamics that is based on haplodiploid genetics. We consider a mutation that acts in a queen, causing her to control the reproductive behavior of her workers. Our mathematical analysis yields precise conditions for the evolutionary emergence and stability of queen-induced worker sterility. These conditions do not depend on the queen's mating frequency. Moreover, we find that queen control is always established if it increases colony reproductive efficiency and can evolve even if it decreases colony efficiency. We further outline the conditions under which queen control is evolutionarily stable against invasion by mutant, reproductive workers.

Copyright 
The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY 4.0 International license.
Back to top
PreviousNext
Posted February 22, 2017.
Download PDF
Email

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word about bioRxiv.

NOTE: Your email address is requested solely to identify you as the sender of this article.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
The evolution of queen control over worker reproduction in the social Hymenoptera
(Your Name) has forwarded a page to you from bioRxiv
(Your Name) thought you would like to see this page from the bioRxiv website.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Share
The evolution of queen control over worker reproduction in the social Hymenoptera
Jason Olejarz, Carl Veller, Martin A. Nowak
bioRxiv 110973; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/110973
Reddit logo Twitter logo Facebook logo LinkedIn logo Mendeley logo
Citation Tools
The evolution of queen control over worker reproduction in the social Hymenoptera
Jason Olejarz, Carl Veller, Martin A. Nowak
bioRxiv 110973; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/110973

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One

Subject Area

  • Evolutionary Biology
Subject Areas
All Articles
  • Animal Behavior and Cognition (4672)
  • Biochemistry (10337)
  • Bioengineering (7655)
  • Bioinformatics (26286)
  • Biophysics (13497)
  • Cancer Biology (10666)
  • Cell Biology (15408)
  • Clinical Trials (138)
  • Developmental Biology (8485)
  • Ecology (12803)
  • Epidemiology (2067)
  • Evolutionary Biology (16822)
  • Genetics (11381)
  • Genomics (15462)
  • Immunology (10596)
  • Microbiology (25165)
  • Molecular Biology (10198)
  • Neuroscience (54382)
  • Paleontology (399)
  • Pathology (1665)
  • Pharmacology and Toxicology (2889)
  • Physiology (4333)
  • Plant Biology (9234)
  • Scientific Communication and Education (1585)
  • Synthetic Biology (2554)
  • Systems Biology (6770)
  • Zoology (1461)