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Manipulation of worker size diversity does not affect colony fitness under natural conditions in the ant Temnothorax nylanderi. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-020-02885-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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2
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Kuhn A, Darras H, Paknia O, Aron S. Repeated evolution of queen parthenogenesis and social hybridogenesis in
Cataglyphis
desert ants. Mol Ecol 2019; 29:549-564. [DOI: 10.1111/mec.15283] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2019] [Revised: 10/07/2019] [Accepted: 10/21/2019] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Alexandre Kuhn
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology Université Libre de Bruxelles Brussels Belgium
| | - Hugo Darras
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology Université Libre de Bruxelles Brussels Belgium
- Department of Ecology and Evolution Biophore UNIL Sorge University of Lausanne Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Omid Paknia
- ITZ, Ecology and Evolution TiHo Hannover Hannover Germany
| | - Serge Aron
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology Université Libre de Bruxelles Brussels Belgium
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3
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Centorame M, Angelino D, Bonanni R, Fanfani A. Static and evolutionary allometry in the Italian endemic ant species Cataglyphis italica (Emery 1906). ETHOL ECOL EVOL 2019. [DOI: 10.1080/03949370.2019.1639080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Massimiliano Centorame
- Department of Biology and Biotecnology ‘Charles Darwin’, ‘Sapienza’ University of Rome, Viale dell’Università 32, Rome 00185, Italy
| | - Davide Angelino
- Department of Biology and Biotecnology ‘Charles Darwin’, ‘Sapienza’ University of Rome, Viale dell’Università 32, Rome 00185, Italy
| | - Roberto Bonanni
- Independent researcher, Via Giuseppe Donati 32, Rome 00159, Italy
| | - Alberto Fanfani
- Department of Biology and Biotecnology ‘Charles Darwin’, ‘Sapienza’ University of Rome, Viale dell’Università 32, Rome 00185, Italy
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4
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Queen Control or Queen Signal in Ants: What Remains of the Controversy 25 Years After Keller and Nonacs' Seminal Paper? J Chem Ecol 2018; 44:805-817. [PMID: 29858748 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-018-0974-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2018] [Revised: 04/05/2018] [Accepted: 05/25/2018] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
Ant queen pheromones (QPs) have long been known to affect colony functioning. In many species, QPs affect important reproductive functions such as diploid larvae sexualization and egg-laying by workers, unmated queens (gynes), or other queens. Until the 1990s, these effects were generally viewed to be the result of queen manipulation through the use of coercive or dishonest signals. However, in their seminal 1993 paper, Keller and Nonacs challenged this idea, suggesting that QPs had evolved as honest signals that informed workers and other colony members of the queen's presence and reproductive state. This paper has greatly influenced the study of ant QPs and inspired numerous attempts to identify fertility-related compounds and test their physiological and behavioral effects. In the present article, we review the literature on ant QPs in various contexts and pay special attention to the role of cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs). Although the controversy generated by Keller and Nonacs' (Anim Behav 45:787-794, 1993) paper is currently less intensively debated, there is still no clear evidence which allows the rejection of the queen control hypothesis in favor of the queen signal hypothesis. We argue that important questions remain regarding the mode of action of QPs, and their targets which may help understanding their evolution.
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5
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Peeters C, Aron S. Evolutionary reduction of female dispersal in Cataglyphis desert ants. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2017. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/blx052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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6
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Boulay R, Aron S, Cerdá X, Doums C, Graham P, Hefetz A, Monnin T. Social Life in Arid Environments: The Case Study of Cataglyphis Ants. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ENTOMOLOGY 2017; 62:305-321. [PMID: 27860520 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ento-031616-034941] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Unlike most desert-dwelling animals, Cataglyphis ants do not attempt to escape the heat; rather, they apply their impressive heat tolerance to avoid competitors and predators. This thermally defined niche has promoted a range of adaptations both at the individual and colony levels. We have also recently discovered that within the genus Cataglyphis there are incredibly diverse social systems, modes of reproduction, and dispersal, prompting the tantalizing question of whether social diversity may also be a consequence of the harsh environment within which we find these charismatic ants. Here we review recent advances regarding the physiological, behavioral, life-history, colony, and ecological characteristics of Cataglyphis and consider perspectives on future research that will build our understanding of organic adaptive responses to desertification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raphaël Boulay
- Le Studium Loire Valley Institute for Advanced Studies, 45000 Orléans, France;
- Institute of Insect Biology, Tours University, 37200 Tours, France
| | - Serge Aron
- Le Studium Loire Valley Institute for Advanced Studies, 45000 Orléans, France;
- Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, 1050, Belgium
| | - Xim Cerdá
- Le Studium Loire Valley Institute for Advanced Studies, 45000 Orléans, France;
- Doñana Biological Station, CSIC, 41092 Seville, Spain
| | - Claudie Doums
- Le Studium Loire Valley Institute for Advanced Studies, 45000 Orléans, France;
- Institute of Systematics, Evolution, and Biodiversity, CNRS, UPMC, EPHE, MNHN, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Paul Graham
- Le Studium Loire Valley Institute for Advanced Studies, 45000 Orléans, France;
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Brighton, BN1 9QG, United Kingdom
| | - Abraham Hefetz
- Le Studium Loire Valley Institute for Advanced Studies, 45000 Orléans, France;
- Department of Zoology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, 69978 Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Thibaud Monnin
- Le Studium Loire Valley Institute for Advanced Studies, 45000 Orléans, France;
- UMR 7618, Institute of Ecology and Environmental Sciences of Paris, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, 75252 Paris, France
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7
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Cronin AL, Monnin T, Sillam-Dussès D, Aubrun F, Fédérici P, Doums C. Qualitative bias in offspring investment in a superorganism is linked to dispersal and nest inheritance. Anim Behav 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.06.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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8
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Evolution of reproductive traits in Cataglyphis desert ants: mating frequency, queen number, and thelytoky. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-016-2144-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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9
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Early developmental processes limit socially mediated phenotypic plasticity in an ant. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-015-2052-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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10
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Caut S, Barroso Á, Cerdá X, Amor F, Boulay RR. A year in an ant's life: Opportunism and seasonal variation in the foraging ecology ofAphaenogaster senilis. ECOSCIENCE 2015. [DOI: 10.2980/20-1-3559] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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11
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Schultner E, Gardner A, Karhunen M, Helanterä H. Ant Larvae as Players in Social Conflict: Relatedness and Individual Identity Mediate Cannibalism Intensity. Am Nat 2014; 184:E161-74. [DOI: 10.1086/678459] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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12
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Boulay R, Arnan X, Cerdá X, Retana J. The ecological benefits of larger colony size may promote polygyny in ants. J Evol Biol 2014; 27:2856-63. [PMID: 25302869 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2014] [Revised: 09/15/2014] [Accepted: 09/17/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
How polygyny evolved in social insect societies is a long-standing question. This phenomenon, which is functionally similar to communal breeding in vertebrates, occurs when several queens come together in the same nest to lay eggs that are raised by workers. As a consequence, polygyny drastically reduces genetic relatedness among nestmates. It has been suggested that the short-term benefits procured by group living may outweigh the costs of sharing the same nesting site and thus contribute to organisms rearing unrelated individuals. However, tests of this hypothesis are still limited. To examine the evolutionary emergence of polygyny, we reviewed the literature to build a data set containing life-history traits for 149 Palearctic ant species and combined this data set with a reconstructed phylogeny. We show that monogyny is the ancestral state and that polygyny has evolved secondarily and independently throughout the phylogenetic tree. The occurrence of polygyny is significantly correlated with larger colony size, dependent colony founding and ecological dominance. Although polydomy (when a colony simultaneously uses several connected nests) tends to occur more frequently in polygynous species, this trend is not significant when phylogenetic history is accounted for. Overall, our results indicate that polygyny may have evolved in ants in spite of the reduction in nestmate relatedness because large colony size provides immediate ecological advantages, such as the more efficient use of temporal food resources. We suggest that the competitive context of ant communities may have provided the conditions necessary for the evolution of polygyny in some clades.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Boulay
- Departamento de Zoología, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain; IRBI, UMR CNRS 7261, Université François Rabelais de Tours, Tours, France
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13
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Arnan X, Cerdá X, Retana J. Ant functional responses along environmental gradients. J Anim Ecol 2014; 83:1398-408. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2013] [Accepted: 03/24/2014] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Xavier Arnan
- CREAF; Cerdanyola del Vallès 08193 Catalunya Spain
- Faculty of Biology; TU Darmstadt; Schnittspahnstrasse 3 D-64287 Darmstadt Germany
| | - Xim Cerdá
- Estación Biológica de Doñana; CSIC; Avda Américo Vespucio, s/n E-41092 Sevilla Spain
| | - Javier Retana
- CREAF; Cerdanyola del Vallès 08193 Catalunya Spain
- Univ Autònoma Barcelona; Cerdanyola del Vallès 08193 Catalunya Spain
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14
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Jowers MJ, Amor F, Ortega P, Lenoir A, Boulay RR, Cerdá X, Galarza JA. Recent speciation and secondary contact in endemic ants. Mol Ecol 2014; 23:2529-42. [PMID: 24720762 DOI: 10.1111/mec.12749] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2012] [Revised: 03/27/2014] [Accepted: 03/27/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Gene flow is the main force opposing divergent selection, and its effects are greater in populations in close proximity. Thus, complete reproductive isolation between parapatric populations is not expected, particularly in the absence of ecological adaptation and sharp environmental differences. Here, we explore the biogeographical patterns of an endemic ant species, Cataglyphis floricola, for which two colour morphs (black and bicolour) coexist in parapatry throughout continuous sandy habitat in southern Spain. Discriminant analyses of six biometric measurements of male genitalia and 27 cuticular hydrocarbons reveal high differentiation between morphs. Furthermore, the low number of shared alleles derived from nuclear markers (microsatellites) between the morphs at their contact zone suggests the absence of recent gene flow. Mitochondrial DNA (COI) phylogenetic analysis and median-joining networks show that the black morph is basal to the bicolour morph, with unique haplotypes recovered for each morph. Mismatch distribution analysis and Bayesian skyline plots suggest that they are undergoing different demographic changes, with the bicolour and black morphs at demographic equilibrium and expansion, respectively. Thus, our results show complete reproductive isolation between the two colour morphs as evidenced from genetic, chemical and morphological data. We suggest that these divergence events could be explained by historical vicariance during the Pleistocene, in which reproductive traits experienced strong divergent selection between the morphs initiating or culminating speciation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J Jowers
- Estación Biológica de Doñana (CSIC), Av. Américo Vespucio, 41092, Sevilla, Spain; Departamento de Biología Animal, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, 18071, Granada, Spain
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15
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Saar M, Leniaud L, Aron S, Hefetz A. At the brink of supercoloniality: genetic, behavioral, and chemical assessments of population structure of the desert ant Cataglyphis niger. Front Ecol Evol 2014. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2014.00013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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16
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Jowers MJ, Leniaud L, Cerdá X, Alasaad S, Caut S, Amor F, Aron S, Boulay RR. Social and population structure in the ant Cataglyphis emmae. PLoS One 2013; 8:e72941. [PMID: 24039827 PMCID: PMC3767659 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0072941] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2013] [Accepted: 07/16/2013] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Dispersal has consequences not only for individual fitness, but also for population dynamics, population genetics and species distribution. Social Hymenoptera show two contrasting colony reproductive strategies, dependent and independent colony foundation modes, and these are often associated to the population structures derived from inter and intra-population gene flow processes conditioned by alternative dispersal strategies. Here we employ microsatellite and mitochondrial markers to investigate the population and social genetic structure and dispersal patterns in the ant Cataglyphis emmae at both, local and regional scales. We find that C. emmae is monogynous and polyandrous. Lack of detection of any population viscosity and population structure with nuclear markers at the local scale suggests efficient dispersal, in agreement with a lack of inbreeding. Contrasting demographic differences before and during the mating seasons suggest that C. emmae workers raise sexuals in peripheric nest chambers to reduce intracolonial conflicts. The high genetic differentiation recovered from the mtDNA haplotypes, together with the significant correlation of such to geographic distance, and presence of new nuclear alleles between areas (valleys) suggest long-term historical isolation between these regions, indicative of limited dispersal at the regional scale. Our findings on the ecological, social and population structure of this species increases our understanding of the patterns and processes involved under independent colony foundation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J. Jowers
- Departamento de Etología y Conservación de la Biodiversidad, Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain
- Departmento de Biología Animal, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Laurianne Leniaud
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Xim Cerdá
- Departamento de Etología y Conservación de la Biodiversidad, Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain
| | - Samer Alasaad
- Departamento de Etología y Conservación de la Biodiversidad, Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain
| | - Stephane Caut
- Departamento de Etología y Conservación de la Biodiversidad, Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain
| | - Fernando Amor
- Departamento de Etología y Conservación de la Biodiversidad, Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain
| | - Serge Aron
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Raphaël R. Boulay
- Departmento de Biología Animal, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
- IRBI, Université François Rabelais de Tours, Tours, France
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17
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Recognition of caste and mating status maintains monogyny in the ant Aphaenogaster senilis. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2013. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-013-1558-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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18
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Cronin AL, Molet M, Doums C, Monnin T, Peeters C. Recurrent evolution of dependent colony foundation across eusocial insects. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ENTOMOLOGY 2012; 58:37-55. [PMID: 22934981 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ento-120811-153643] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
The spectacular success of eusocial insects can be attributed to their sophisticated cooperation, yet cooperation is conspicuously absent during colony foundation when queens are alone. Selection against this solitary stage has led to a dramatically different strategy in thousands of eusocial insect species in which colonies are started by groups of nestmates and the benefits of sociality are retained continuously. Dependent colony foundation (DCF) evolved recurrently multiple times across the ants, bees, and wasps, though its prevalence in termites remains unclear. We review adaptations at both the colony level (reproductive investment shifts from sexuals to workers) and the individual level (wingless queens evolve in ants), and other consequences for life history (invasiveness, parasite transmission). Although few studies have focused on DCF, the accumulated data from anecdotal reports, supported by indirect information including morphology, population genetics, and colony demographics, make it clear that this strategy is more diverse and widespread than is usually recognized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam L Cronin
- Laboratoire Écologie & Évolution CNRS UMR 7625, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, 75 005 Paris, France.
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19
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Galarza JA, Jovani R, Cerdá X, Rico C, Barroso Á, Boulay R. Frequent colony relocations do not result in effective dispersal in the gypsy ant Aphaenogaster senilis. OIKOS 2011. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2011.19859.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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20
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LENIAUD LAURIANNE, HEFTEZ ABRAHAM, GRUMIAU LAURENT, ARON SERGE. Multiple mating and supercoloniality in Cataglyphis desert ants. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2011. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2011.01772.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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21
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Cronin AL, Fédérici P, Doums C, Monnin T. The influence of intraspecific competition on resource allocation during dependent colony foundation in a social insect. Oecologia 2011; 168:361-9. [PMID: 21833638 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-011-2098-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2010] [Accepted: 07/13/2011] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
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22
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QIAN ZENGQIANG, SCHLÜNS HELGE, SCHLICK-STEINER BIRGITC, STEINER FLORIANM, ROBSON SIMONKA, SCHLÜNS ELLENA, CROZIER ROSSH. Intraspecific support for the polygyny-vs.-polyandry hypothesis in the bulldog ant Myrmecia brevinoda. Mol Ecol 2011; 20:3681-91. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-294x.2011.05195.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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