Mingsheng Zhuang, Thomas J Colgan, Yulong Guo, Zhengyi Zhang, Fugang Liu, Zhongyan Xia, Xueyan Dai, Zhihao Zhang, Yuanjian Li, Liuhao Wang, Jin Xu, Yueqin Guo, Yingping Qu, Jun Yao, Huipeng Yang, Fan Yang, Xiaoying Li, Jun Guo, Mark J F Brown, Jilian Li
The emergence of caste-differentiated colonies, which have been defined as 'superorganisms', in ants, bees, and wasps represents a major transition in evolution. Lifetime mating commitment by queens, pre-imaginal caste determination and lifetime unmatedness of workers are key features of these animal societies. Workers in superorganismal species like honey bees and many ants have consequently lost, or retain only vestigial spermathecal structures. However, bumble bee workers retain complete spermathecae despite 25-40 million years since their origin of superorganismality, which remains an evolutionary mystery...
September 7, 2023: Nature Communications