Winter is coming: harsh environments limit independent reproduction of cooperative-breeding queens in a socially polymorphic ant

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Etat: Public
Version: Author's accepted manuscript
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ID Serval
serval:BIB_4DE13FA29A21
Type
Article: article d'un périodique ou d'un magazine.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Titre
Winter is coming: harsh environments limit independent reproduction of cooperative-breeding queens in a socially polymorphic ant
Périodique
Biology Letters
Auteur⸱e⸱s
De Gasperin Ornela, Blacher Pierre, Grasso Gugliemo, Chapuisat Michel
Statut éditorial
Publié
Date de publication
2020
Volume
16
Pages
20190730
Langue
anglais
Résumé
Cooperative breeding animals frequently inhabit harsh environments. It is widely accepted that harsh environments hinder independent reproduction, and this constraint maintains individuals in family groups. Yet the assumption that harsh ecological conditions reduce the success of members of cooperative breeding groups when breeding independently has not been experimentally tested. We addressed this shortcoming using the socially polymorphic Alpine silver ant, Formica selysi. This species has single-queen (independent breeders) and multiple-queen (cooperative breeders) colonies coexisting within populations. We placed newly mated queens emerging from each type of colony to breed alone in either a harsh or mild winter condition and recorded their brood production and survival. Queens emerging from single-queen colonies were unaffected by the winter condition and were more successful at founding a nest independently than queens from multiple-queen colonies. By contrast, queens from multiple-queen colonies had higher mortality after a harsh than after a mild winter. These results support the long-held assumption that harsh environments constrain independent reproduction of members of cooperative breeding groups.
Mots-clé
Cooperative breeding, ecological constraints, Hibernation, Ants, Social polymorphism
Pubmed
Création de la notice
11/12/2019 16:48
Dernière modification de la notice
21/11/2022 8:25
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