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L1+2 - Why study social insects?
- 2. TYPES OF SOCIALITY
- a. Eusociality
- i. Cooperative brood care
- ii. Overlap of generations
- iii. Reproductive division of labour (MOST IMPORTANT)
- Some individuals in colony reproduce 'queens' (bees,
wasps, ants and termites)
- As well as 'kings' (termites)
- Kings mate repeatedly with queen,
producing both male and female
workers and soldiers
- In other species, males are only present as
sperm in the females body and do NOT play a
part in social life
- In other species, males are only present as
sperm in the females body and do NOT play a
part in social life
- Kings mate repeatedly with queen,
producing both male and female
workers and soldiers
- Some individuals in colony reproduce 'queens' (bees,
wasps, ants and termites)
- Workers MAY be morphologically distinct from
queens - but in may species the difference is
behavioural/physiological NOT morphological
- i. Cooperative brood care
- b. Other types of insect sociality
- Not all insect sociality is eusociality
- i. Subsociality
- A.k.a. Parental behaviour
- Precursor to eusociality in bees,
wasps and ants
- Brood is cared for by the mother, father or both for a certain length of time
- A.k.a. Parental behaviour
- ii. Aggregation
- Common in species with warning colouration,
especially during resting periods
- Monarch butterflies - winter
- Ladybirds - summer
- Locusts
- Monarch butterflies - winter
- Every individual can reproduce and parents do not
usually care for young
- Common in species with warning colouration,
especially during resting periods
- Not all insect sociality is eusociality
- c. Other eusocial insects
- i. All termites and ants (except some
socially parasitic ants)
- ii. Some bees and wasps - most are NOT
- iii. Clonal societies with defenders in gall-dwelling aphids (Hemiptera)
- iv. Australian gall-dwelling thrips
- v. One species of Australian bark beetle (Coleoptera)
- vi. c12,000 species described, with ants (Formicidae) being the most
diverse (8,800 described species)
- Colonies will have from a few individuals to
>100,000 (bees, wasps), >10million (ants,
termites)
- i. All termites and ants (except some
socially parasitic ants)
- d. Eusocial-non insects
- i. Mammal
- Naked mole rat
- Damaraland mole rat
- Naked mole rat
- ii. Birds
- 'Helpers at the nest' -
close relatives
- 'Helpers at the nest' -
close relatives
- iii. Caribbean snapping shrimp
- Life inside sponges in the Caribbean (lives inside its food)
- Life inside sponges in the Caribbean (lives inside its food)
- iv. Humans
- Post-menopausal women - only known case of
a sterile caste in vertebrates
- Post-menopausal women - only known case of
a sterile caste in vertebrates
- i. Mammal
- a. Eusociality
- 1. AIMS & OBJECTIVES
- a. Aims
- i. To define social insect and eusociality
- ii. To provide a broad overview of social insects
- i. To define social insect and eusociality
- b. Objectives
- i. Memorize and understand the definition of eusociality
- iii. Internalizing a broad picture of the importance of social insects
- iii. Learn names of important taxa
- i. Memorize and understand the definition of eusociality
- a. Aims
- 3. CONFLICTS AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION IN SOCIAL GROUPS
- a. Background
- Inclusive fitness theory has made it possible to understand how
insect eusociality and altruism evolved by natural selection
- It has also shown that insect societies have
reproductive conflict among individuals
- This is because, despite relatives, they are not clones of
each other R=1
- This can be resolved by processes such as worker policing -
prevents individual workers from acting selfishly
- Higher relatedness leads to increased
altruism (fewer lay eggs instead of
working)
- Higher relatedness leads to increased
altruism (fewer lay eggs instead of
working)
- Altruism is favored because the members of an insect society are
relatives (R >0), but conflict can still occur as they are not clones (R<1)
- This can be resolved by processes such as worker policing -
prevents individual workers from acting selfishly
- This is because, despite relatives, they are not clones of
each other R=1
- Theory based on the fact that all relatives share genes, thus genes
for helping can be passed on if workers rear close relatives
- It has also shown that insect societies have
reproductive conflict among individuals
- Inclusive fitness theory has made it possible to understand how
insect eusociality and altruism evolved by natural selection
- b. Organization of complex systems
- Self organization is key for efficient foraging
- E.g. Social foraging: sharing information
- Nest mates share information about
where food is located
- Waggle dance
- Pheromone trails in ants
and stingless bee
- Waggle dance
- Nest mates share information about
where food is located
- E.g.Nectar transfer between receiver from forager
- E.g. Social foraging: sharing information
- Self organization is key for efficient foraging
- c. Symbioses & mutualisms
- Social insects have a wide range of symbiotic
relationships with other organisms
- Negative: pathogens, pests and parasites
- Positive: Farming - caterpillars and fungus
- Negative: pathogens, pests and parasites
- Social insects have a wide range of symbiotic
relationships with other organisms
- a. Background
- 4. ECOLOGICAL & ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE
- a. Ecological
- In terrestrial ecosystems;
performing many roles including:
- i. Predation
- ii. Pollination
- iii. Decomposition
- i. Predation
- In terrestrial ecosystems;
performing many roles including:
- b. Economic importance
- Harmful
- Invasive pests, especially in
'unicolonial' ants in warm climates
- Argentine ants - California
and the Med
- Leafcutter ants are pests for
agriculture by eating leaves of crops
and competing with cattle - American
tropics
- Argentine ants - California
and the Med
- Invasive pests, especially in
'unicolonial' ants in warm climates
- Useful
- Honey bee, Apis mellifera, produces 1m tonnes of honey per year,
produces wax and pollinates crops worth billions of pounds
- Honey bee, Apis mellifera, produces 1m tonnes of honey per year,
produces wax and pollinates crops worth billions of pounds
- Harmful
- a. Ecological
- 5. OTHER
- a. Human culture
- Poems
- Paintings
- Movies
- Poems
- b. Public communication of science
- c. Learning, sensory physiology
- Insect workers go backwards and forwards from nest to food repeatedly
- This makes them ideal to study learning and sensory physiology
- What visual cues of the flowers they visit and their nest entrance do they learn?
- What visual cues of the flowers they visit and their nest entrance do they learn?
- This makes them ideal to study learning and sensory physiology
- Insect workers go backwards and forwards from nest to food repeatedly
- d. Nest architecture & building materials
- Hexagonal wax cells of they honey bee are the best known
example of social insect architecture
- Social insects use a wide range of building materials, including
wax, silk,paper, tree resin and soil to construct elaborate nests
- Social insects use a wide range of building materials, including
wax, silk,paper, tree resin and soil to construct elaborate nests
- Hexagonal wax cells of they honey bee are the best known
example of social insect architecture
- a. Human culture
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