Task division and Age Polyethism in colonies of Mischocyttarus latior social wasps (Fox) (Hymenoptera, Vespidae).

Abstract

This paper aimed to study the division of labor between queen and workers, division of labor by age range and sequence of behavioral patterns exercised by females and males from Mischocyttarus latior (F.) colonies. Behaviors of 13 dominant females (queens), 68 subordinate (workers) from emergence until they are 77 days and 12 males in 37 colonies were quantified during 545 hours. There were 23 behavioral acts registered divided into five categories. Both dominant females as the workers showed a behavioral repertoire of 23 items, while males only 15. Dominants remain longer on the nest than subordinates and exercise exclusively the behavior of oviposition and rubbing gaster on the nest and share 21 behaviors with the workers. Males foraged nectar, preys and water, and exercise other behaviors, mostly related to social activity. All behaviors can be performed by any potentially worker at any age.

The effect of age on non-reproductive division of labour in the tropical primitively eusocial wasp, Ropalidia cyathiformis

“…Hence there is no trade-off between the intra-and extranidal tasks, making their age polyethism less striking or weaker than is seen in highly eusocial species. The fact that R. cyathiformis has such a a weak age polyethism seems to be in keeping with what we already know in other primitively eusocial wasps where there is either a rudimentary age polyethism Age polyethism in Ropalidia cyathiformis 271 (Cameron, 1989;Cecílio et al, 2016;Dew and Michener, 1981;Jeanne, 1991;Murakami et al, 2013;Torres et al, 2012;Torres et al, 2013;Tsuchida, 1991;Yoshikawa, 1963) or no age polyethism present as in the case of Belonogaster petiolata (Keeping, 1992) and Mischocyttarus latior (Cecílio et al, 2016).…”

“…The two intranidal tasks are initiated before the two extranidal tasks and there is a specific sequence of task initiation. The trend of performing intranidal tasks and then progressing to extranidal task as they age is a common theme in other primitively eusocial species (Cameron, 1989;Cecílio et al, 2016;Dew and Michener, 1981;Jeanne, 1991;Murakami et al, 2013;Torres et al, 2012Torres et al, , 2013Tsuchida, 1991;Yoshikawa, 1963). It is intuitive to understand why the intranidal tasks might be initiated before the extranidal tasks, as it is riskier and costlier to perform tasks outside the nest where they might be exposed to predators.…”

“…Division of labour based on morphological castes is absent in primitively eusocial species (in most ant species and in all flying social Hymenoptera), where there is no strong morphological differentiation between the different individuals. In these species age polyethism is weak or non-existent (Cameron, 1989;Cecílio et al, 2016;Jeanne, 1991;Torres et al, 2012;Tsuchida, 1991), though it must be noted that these species have not been so well studied in this regard. The tropical primitively eusocial wasp Ropalidia marginata appears to be an exception to this because it has relatively well-developed age polyethism reminiscent of highly eusocial species (Naug and Gadagkar 1998a).…”