Insect and Arachnid Ecology and Behavior

Extended Phenotype Influences Collective Behaviour and Survival in a Social Spider

This study examines how human-induced changes in spider web architecture affect collective behavior and survival in social spiders.

Lineage-specific patterns of sexually dimorphic antennal transcription in the paper wasp Polistes fuscatus

The paper identifies lineage-specific sexually dimorphic antennal transcription patterns in Polistes fuscatus, highlighting differences from ants and honey bees.

A new trait in a well-studied ant: low aggression between workers from Lasius niger (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) nest complexes

The paper describes a new trait in Lasius niger ants, where workers from the same nest complex show low aggression, promoting nest integrity and growth, but exhibit higher aggression towards workers from a distant monodomous population.

Red harvester ant nests impact soil compaction but not temperature in peri-urban habitats of the Lower Rio Grande Valley

This study examines how red harvester ant nests affect soil compaction and temperature in suburban habitats, finding increased compaction but no temperature changes.

Queens from a unique hyper-dense Lasius niger population tolerate pleometrosis better than queens from a 'normal' population

The study compares queen survival in pleometrotic groups from a hyper-dense and normal Lasius niger population, finding higher survival in the hyper-dense population.

Neophobic response of bull ants (Myrmecia midas) to odours introduced on their foraging route

This study examines how bull ants respond to added odours on their foraging route, finding neophobic reactions and altered navigation behaviors.

Experience improves navigational knowledge of dumpers in desert ants (Melophorus bagoti)

This study shows that experienced dumpers in Melophorus bagoti ants are better oriented towards their nest than naive ones, indicating improved spatial knowledge from repeated dumping trips.

Colony demographics shape nest construction in Camponotus fellah ants

This study shows that ant colony demographics influence nest construction, with younger ants digging more and creating slanted tunnels, while older ants dig straight down after catastrophic events.

Invasive ants fed spinosad collectively recruit to known food faster yet individually abandon food earlier

This study shows that invasive ants exposed to spinosad abandon food faster individually but collectively still prefer familiar odors, suggesting they do not develop conditioned taste aversion to the pesticide.

Spatio-temporal learning in a mass-recruiting leaf-cutting ant (Acromyrmex subterraneus)

This study shows leaf-cutting ants can anticipate sucrose availability through spatio-temporal learning, adjusting their foraging behavior to predict and locate food.

LEVERAGING CITIZEN SCIENCE TO ASSESS RICHNESS, DIVERSITY, AND ABUNDANCE IN ANT COMMUNITIES

This paper integrates citizen science data with scientific sampling to model ant community richness, diversity, and abundance across elevation gradients.

Intragenomic conflict underlies extreme phenotypic plasticity in queen-worker caste determination in honey bees (Apis mellifera)

The paper investigates parent-of-origin gene expression differences in honey bee caste determination, finding patrigenes favor queen fate and linking these to histone modifications.

The principles of expected and realised genetic relatedness among individual honeybees

The paper simulates honeybee populations to compare genetic relatedness estimators and highlights methodological considerations for interpreting relatedness coefficients.

Stop and go: exploring alternative mechanisms for task allocation in social insects - response and satisfaction thresholds trade off cost, accuracy, and speed differently

This paper models different task-allocation mechanisms in social insects, showing how response, satisfaction, and composite thresholds trade off speed, cost, and accuracy in task allocation.

Selective predation by ants against less-honeydew secreting aphids

The paper shows ants selectively prey on aphids that do not secrete honeydew, and this honeydew secretion is heritable.

Generalizing the response and satisfaction threshold models for multiple tasks: A maximal-entropy approach

The paper generalizes response threshold models for multiple tasks using a maximal-entropy approach, allowing analysis of task prioritization and interference across different task types.

The genomic consequences and persistence of sociality in spiders

This study investigates the genomic consequences of sociality in spiders, finding that transitions to sociality lead to reduced effective population size and genomic diversity, potentially causing extinction.

Parallel pheromone, metabolite, and lipid analyses reveal patterns associated with early life transitions and ovary activation in honey bee (Apis mellifera) queens

The paper measures pheromone, metabolite, and lipid profiles in honey bee queens to assess how these relate to age, laying status, and worker acceptance, finding that older queens are more accepted despite smaller ovaries.

Social administration of juvenile hormone to larvae increases body size and nutritional needs for pupation

This study shows that administering juvenile hormone to ant larvae via social regurgitation increases their body size and nutritional needs, leading to larger adult workers.

Insights from Melipona bicolor hybrid genome assembly: A stingless bee genome with chromosome-level scaffold

This paper presents the chromosome-level genome assembly of Melipona bicolor, a polygynous stingless bee, and explores its evolutionary and venom gene characteristics.

Reference genome of the bicolored carpenter ant, Camponotus vicinus

The paper presents a high-quality genome assembly of the bicolored carpenter ant, C. vicinus, providing a resource for evolutionary ecology studies and clarifying cryptic diversity within the species complex.

Live-bearing cockroach genome reveals convergent evolutionary mechanisms linked to viviparity in insects and beyond

The paper identifies common genomic pathways involved in viviparity across insects, suggesting convergent evolution mechanisms shared with vertebrates.

Age and Task Modulate Olfactory Sensitivity in the Florida Carpenter Ant Camponotus floridanus

This study examines how age and task affect olfactory sensitivity in minor and major worker castes of Florida carpenter ants, finding age-related shifts in minors and stable responses in majors.

Developmental transcriptomes predict adult social behaviors in the socially flexible sweat bee, Lasioglossum baleicum

The paper shows that developmental transcriptomes predict adult social behaviors in sweat bees, linking environmental temperature to social structure through transcriptomic differences.

Reference genome of the ant Lasius platythorax

The paper presents a high-quality genome assembly for the ant Lasius platythorax using long-read sequencing and Hi-C, providing insights into the genomic basis of trait differentiation in ant species.

Developmental biomechanics and age polyethism in leaf-cutter ants

This study investigates the biomechanical development in leaf-cutter ants, finding that increased bite force and head capsule rigidity in older workers may underlie age polyethism.

Single-cell dissection of a collective behaviour in honeybees

The paper uses single-cell transcriptomics to show how genetic variants influence gene regulatory networks in honeybee brains, affecting aggression-related behaviors through specific cell populations and pathways.

Intrasexual cuticular hydrocarbon dimorphism in a wasp sheds light on hydrocarbon biosynthesis genes in Hymenoptera

The paper identifies genes involved in cuticular hydrocarbon biosynthesis in Hymenoptera using intrasexual dimorphism and transcriptomics.

Maternal body condition and season influence RNA deposition in the oocytes of alfalfa leafcutting bees (Megachile rotundata)

The paper investigates how maternal body condition and season affect RNA deposition in oocytes of alfalfa leafcutting bees, finding that both factors influence mRNA and miRNA levels before the maternal-to-zygotic transition.

Differential gene expression underlying the biosynthesis of Dufour's gland signals in Bombus impatiens

The paper identifies differentially expressed genes in the Dufour's gland of Bombus impatiens queens and workers, revealing pathways for caste-specific chemical signal biosynthesis.