Caste In Ant Colonies: How Fate Is Determined Between Workers And Queens
Sunday, October 26, 2008 - 10:14
in Biology & Nature
In colonies of social insects the struggle for the spoils is embodied by a reproductive division of labor. Some individuals (the queens) reproduce, while large and small workers provide the labor. Larvae become different castes (small workers, large workers, or new queens) based on genetics, nutrition, and environment (colony size). However the relative importance of each factor was different for each caste.
Read the whole article on Science Daily
More from Science Daily
Related
- New research discovers worker bees in 'reproductive class war' with queenWed, 9 Sep 2009, 19:30:44 EDT
- Vicious queen ants use mob tactics to reach the topFri, 30 Sep 2011, 6:36:15 EDT
- The ant queen's chemical crownWed, 30 Jun 2010, 11:05:17 EDT
- A bee's future as queen or worker may rest with parasitic flyMon, 28 Jul 2008, 12:21:30 EDT
- Worker ants of the world, unite! You have nothing to lose but your fertilityWed, 19 Nov 2008, 14:01:27 EST