The primitively social behavior of Euglossa cordata (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Euglossini): a view from the perspective of kin selection theory and models of reproductive skew

Author(s)

Freiria, Gabriele Antico ; Garofalo, Carlos Alberto ; Del Lama, Marco Antonio

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Apidologie; v. 48, n. 4, p. 523-532, JUL 2017.
• Web of Science Citations: 11

Abstract

The present study investigated the level of reproductive skew during the reactivation processes of 11 nests of Euglossa cordata. Behavioral observations associated with kinship analysis between offspring and females involved in these processes were carried out. Different types of associations between females occurred in these reactivations: between mothers and daughters, sisters, cousins, and unrelated females. Behavioral observations and Mendelian segregation analysis at 12 microsatellite loci attributed all the offspring to the dominant female of each nest. The results revealed a full reproductive skew at the different processes of reactivation, irrespective of the type of association between females. Thus, our data indicate that reproductive skew was not associated with genetic relatedness in E. cordata. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 11/21501-2 - Bee population genetics and the extinction vortex of the Hymenoptera
• Grantee: Marco Antonio Del Lama
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 11/13363-9 - Does reproductive skew correlate positively with genetic relatedness and mating system? Euglossa cordata and Euglossa townsendi as case studies
• Grantee: Gabriele Antico Freiria
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate