Genetic structure and reproductive strategy of the ant Cardiocondyla elegans: strictly monogynous nests invaded by unrelated sexuals
| Autor: | Jean-Luc Mercier, Alexandra Schrempf, Alain Lenoir, J.-C. Lenoir, Jürgen Heinze |
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| Rok vydání: | 2006 |
| Předmět: |
0106 biological sciences
0303 health sciences Ergatoid food.ingredient biology Ecology Cardiocondyla elegans Reproductive strategy Zoology biology.organism_classification 010603 evolutionary biology 01 natural sciences ANT 03 medical and health sciences food Nest Genetic structure Genetics Inbreeding Cardiocondyla Ecology Evolution Behavior and Systematics 030304 developmental biology |
| Zdroj: | Molecular Ecology. 16:345-354 |
| ISSN: | 1365-294X 0962-1083 |
| DOI: | 10.1111/j.1365-294x.2006.03156.x |
| Popis: | Cardiocondyla elegans is a Mediterranean ant that nests on river banks. It rears only wingless (ergatoid) males that live peacefully in the same nest as opposed to other species of the same genus, which have both peaceful, winged and mutually aggressive 'ergatoid' males. Using microsatellite analysis, we investigated the genetic structure of 21 colonies from three different locations as well as the parentage of sexuals of two colonies of C. elegans. We show that C. elegans is strictly monogynous, and that its nests can contain foreign sexuals. The presence of alien sexuals inside ant nests is described for the first time and probably counteracts inbreeding resulting from matings between siblings. In the laboratory, aggression tests showed that workers only allow alien males to enter their nests, while all winged female sexuals attempting to enter were attacked. Nevertheless, the presence of alien female sexuals in nests in the field seems to result from active carrying behaviour by workers during the reproductive period. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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