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Encyclopedia of Social Insects pp 1–5Cite as

Lasioglossum

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The genus Lasioglossum (Halictidae: Halictinae) comprises over 1800 species in multiple subgenera that are currently in a state of taxonomic flux. The behavior of at least 102 species has been described, although in many instances sample sizes are rather small and geographically restricted. Of these, 42 species have been described as solitary, about 30 as eusocial, and 11 as communal. Semisociality occurs in combination with solitary nest founding in one species (L. comagenense; see below) and as a frequent phase in the colony development of eusocial species. It also occurs in combination with communal behavior, although the two types of behavior are difficult or even impossible to distinguish in small colonies. Thus, the proportion of truly solitary species appears to be considerably higher than in the next largest genus of non-kleptoparasitic halictids, Halictus. The common ancestor of the genera Lasioglossum and Halictuswas evidently eusocial. The evolutionary lability of...

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References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences, Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada

    Miriam H. Richards

  2. Biology, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

    Laurence Packer

Authors
  1. Miriam H. Richards
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  2. Laurence Packer
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Correspondence to Miriam H. Richards .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of the West Indies, Department of Life Sciences University of the West Indies, St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

    Christopher Starr

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Richards, M.H., Packer, L. (2020). Lasioglossum . In: Starr, C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Social Insects. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-90306-4_71-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-90306-4_71-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-90306-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-90306-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Biomedicine and Life SciencesReference Module Biomedical and Life Sciences

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