Insect and Arachnid Ecology and Behavior

Population genomics of the inquiline social parasite Acromyrmex insinuator and its leaf-cutting ant hosts A. echinatior and A. octospinosus reveals cryptic differentiation and reduced efficiency of selection in the parasite

The paper uses population genomic analyses to study the social parasite Acromyrmex insinuator and its hosts, finding reduced genetic diversity, eroded adaptive potential, and cryptic population structure in the parasite.

Mature larvae continue calling at night in Vespa mandarinia from laboratory observations

This study observes Vespa mandarinia larvae producing calls at night, regardless of light conditions or worker presence, revealing previously undocumented nocturnal behavior.

Latent gene network expression underlies partial re-evolution of a polyphenic trait in the worker caste of ants

The paper shows that latent gene network expression in ant worker castes underlies the partial re-evolution of ocelli, suggesting persistent developmental potentials in polyphenic systems.

Evidence for Fission Yeast Survival and Dispersal through Social and Solitary Bees

This study shows that fission yeasts can survive in bees and spread through defecation and trophallaxis, highlighting bees as vectors for yeast dispersal.

Phylosymbiosis and the hologenome in fungus-gardening ants

The paper examines phylosymbiosis in fungus-gardening ants by analyzing host and microbiome phylogenies, finding congruence between ants and their microbiomes but not between fungi and microbiomes.

Atta Leafcutter Ants are Fine-Scale Bioindicators of Geographic and Seasonal Climate Changes Across the Americas

This study uses Atta leafcutter ants as bioindicators to track geographic and seasonal climate changes across the Americas using mating-flight phenology data.

Hive position matters: spatial layout and hive colour impact forager traffic and drifting in Melipona quadrifasciata bees

This study shows that hive layout and color affect forager traffic and drifting in Melipona quadrifasciata bees, with specific configurations reducing drifting.

Undying leafcutter-ant colonies: The oldest Atta texana leafcutter-ant colonies are estimated to grow older than 100 years

This study estimates that some Atta texana leafcutter-ant colonies can live over 100 years due to unique ecological and social factors.

Bombus terrestris Complementary Sex Determiner (BtCSD) is identified as a conserved hymenopteran sex determination region: evolution, breeding, and conservation implications

The paper identifies the CSD locus in Bombus terrestris, showing its conservation across hymenopteran species and implications for population management.

Shifts in demography in changing ecological conditions in a dependent-lineage population of harvester ant colonies

The paper examines demographic shifts in a harvester ant population under drought stress, finding that the rare lineage J1 declined while J2 colonies showed higher fecundity.

A social bee (Bombus terrestris) learns to associate a novel odor with social context

This study shows Bombus terrestris workers can learn to associate novel odors with queen context, influencing their social and reproductive behavior.

Haplodiploidy alone does not predict the evolution of eusociality

The paper tests if haplodiploidy predicts eusociality evolution using insect phylogenies and finds clade-specific dynamics drive the pattern, not haplodiploidy alone.

Beyond queen number: two supergenes coordinate dispersal, mating, and colony founding in the ant Formica cinerea

The paper shows two supergenes in Formica cinerea coordinate dispersal morphology, mating, and colony founding into coherent reproductive strategies.

Discovering search behaviour in black garden ant trajectories

The paper re-analyzes ant movement data to show that black garden ants use directional information in their search behavior, leading to biased random walks that improve search efficiency.

Species boundaries structure competitive interactions among honeybee gut bacteria

The paper quantifies competitive interactions among honeybee gut bacteria strains and finds within-species interactions are stronger and more asymmetric than between-species interactions.

Distribution and efficacy of ingested dsRNA targeting tissue-specific genes in the Argentine ant, Linepithema humile

This study shows orally-administered dsRNA can spread systemically in Argentine ants and knock down tissue-specific genes, suggesting RNAi could be used to study ORs in nestmate recognition.

Contrasting life history strategies explain contrasting phenology of two co-occurring bumble bee species

This study compares phenological patterns of two bumble bee species, showing differences in colony growth strategies and reproductive timing in response to temperature.

Reduced regulatory complexity associated with the evolutionary transition to sociality from cockroaches to termites despite evolutionary parallels with Hymenoptera

This study compares regulatory changes in transcription factors during the social transition from cockroaches to termites, finding reduced regulatory complexity despite similarities with Hymenoptera.

Between specialization and flexibility: how tasks and space shape behavioral profiles in ant colonies

This study investigates how task specialization and flexibility influence behavioral profiles in ant colonies, finding that some tasks impose specialization while others do not, and that individual variation affects role adaptability.

Frequent errors are the worst: robustness to individual failures in collective foraging

This study examines how individual errors affect collective foraging in social insects and finds that communication enhances exploration and mitigates error impacts.

A comparison of honeybee and bumblebee performance in matching-to-sample tasks

This study compares honeybee and bumblebee performance in matching-to-sample tasks, finding species differences and questioning the effectiveness of the Y-maze method.

Regulated apoptosis is a conserved mechanism pausing female reproduction and establishes the sterile worker caste in the eusocial wasp, Polistes

The paper identifies apoptosis as a conserved mechanism maintaining worker sterility in Polistes wasps by comparing ovarian structure and cell death rates with Drosophila.

Rare sex punctuates strict asexual reproduction in the clonal raider ant, Ooceraea biroi

The paper shows that the clonal raider ant, Ooceraea biroi, occasionally reproduces sexually, generating new genetic combinations and potentially overcoming asexuality costs.

Sparse gut microbiomes in solitary bees and wasps

The paper examines gut microbiomes in solitary bees and wasps, finding they have sparse and variable bacterial communities compared to social bees.

Socioecological differentiation and the evolution of brain size and synaptic architecture in predatory ants, Neoponera

This study compares brain size and structure between two Neoponera ant species, finding differences in sensory traits and synaptic organization linked to their socioecological lifestyles.

Social and Spatial Affinity Drive Wound Care by Ants

This study shows that ants provide wound care based on pre-existing social and spatial proximity, identifying a transitional role between nurses and foragers.

Using semi-folded arenas to observe spontaneous emergence of collective trails in whole colonies of termites

This study introduces a semi-folded arena to observe collective trail formation in whole termite colonies under controlled conditions, showing early trail structures in most colonies within 6 minutes.

Hiding in Plain Sight: Novel Observations of Plant Crypsis in a Well-Known Symbiotic System of a Hyperdiverse Tropical Forest

The paper documents a novel case of plant crypsis in devils gardens, showing that Palicourea alba mimics dead leaf litter to persist within ant-plant mutualisms.

Caste-specific ageing emerges from the evolution of resource allocation in eusocial insects

This study presents an individual-based model showing that caste-specific ageing and age polyethism in eusocial insects arise from evolved resource allocation strategies within colonies.

Nutrition of honeybees is constrained by the ratios of essential amino acids in pollen protein

The paper examines how the essential amino acid (EAA) ratios in pollen affect honeybee nutrition and behavior, finding that diets matching bee tissue EAA profiles improve food intake and growth.