Defense castes are know from highly eusocial insects yet have rarely been described in social species with a small colony size. In nests of Euglossa viridissima, an orchid bee exhibiting primitively eusocial behavior, we recorded one subordinate female per nest to specialize in guarding in the presence of a dominant and a second subordinate who specialized in foraging. Guarding may have arisen as a response to cleptobiosis by conspecifics, as nests with a guard more successfully avoided intrusion and resin theft.

A behavioral guard caste in a primitively eusocial orchid bee, Euglossa viridissima, helps defend the nest against resin theft by conspecifics / S. Boff, N. Forfert, R.J. Paxton, E. Montejo, J.J.G. Quezada-Euan. - In: INSECTES SOCIAUX. - ISSN 0020-1812. - 62:2(2015), pp. 247-249.

A behavioral guard caste in a primitively eusocial orchid bee, Euglossa viridissima, helps defend the nest against resin theft by conspecifics

S. Boff
;
2015

Abstract

Defense castes are know from highly eusocial insects yet have rarely been described in social species with a small colony size. In nests of Euglossa viridissima, an orchid bee exhibiting primitively eusocial behavior, we recorded one subordinate female per nest to specialize in guarding in the presence of a dominant and a second subordinate who specialized in foraging. Guarding may have arisen as a response to cleptobiosis by conspecifics, as nests with a guard more successfully avoided intrusion and resin theft.
Apidae; Euglossini; Social evolution; Intraspecific parasitism
Settore AGR/11 - Entomologia Generale e Applicata
2015
Article (author)
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
Boff2015_Article_ABehavioralGuardCasteInAPrimit.pdf

accesso riservato

Tipologia: Publisher's version/PDF
Dimensione 154.21 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
154.21 kB Adobe PDF   Visualizza/Apri   Richiedi una copia
Pubblicazioni consigliate

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/603521
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? ND
  • Scopus 14
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 13
social impact