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Alternative life-histories in a socially polymorphic ant

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Abstract

Social organisms vary greatly in the number of breeders per group; yet, the causes and consequences of this variation remain poorly known. Here, we show that variation in social structure is tightly linked with changes in several fundamental life-history traits within one population of ants. Multiple-queen colonies of Formica selysi were much more populous than single-queen ones. They also occurred in areas of higher nest density, had longer colony lifespan, produced smaller queens that presumably disperse less, and invested less in reproductive individuals relative to workers. These multiple changes in life histories are consistent with a shift in the mode of colony foundation and the degree of philopatry of queens. They may also provide various fitness benefits to members of multiple-queen colonies and are likely to play a central role in the evolution and maintenance of polymorphic social structures.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Samuel Bocherens for help in the field, as well as Serge Aron, Robert L. Hammond, Sara Helms Cahan, Laurent Keller, Pekka Pamilo and two anonymous referees for comments on the manuscript. This study was supported by grants from the Swiss National Science Foundation (number 3100–61934 and 3100–108263).

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  1. Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland

    Hervé Rosset & Michel Chapuisat

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  1. Hervé Rosset
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  2. Michel Chapuisat
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Correspondence to Michel Chapuisat.

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Rosset, H., Chapuisat, M. Alternative life-histories in a socially polymorphic ant. Evol Ecol 21, 577–588 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10682-006-9139-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10682-006-9139-3

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