title: Genetic distance and age affect the cuticular chemical profiles of the clonal ant Cerapachys biroi.
abstract: Although cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) have received much attention from biologists because of their important role in insect communication, few studies have addressed the chemical ecology of clonal species of eusocial insects. In this study we investigated whether and how differences in CHCs relate to the genetics and reproductive dynamics of the parthenogenetic ant Cerapachys biroi. We collected individuals of different ages and subcastes from several colonies belonging to four clonal lineages, and analyzed their cuticular chemical signature. CHCs varied according to colonies and clonal lineages in two independent data sets, and correlations were found between genetic and chemical distances between colonies. This supports the results of previous research showing that C. biroi workers discriminate between nestmates and non-nestmates, especially when they belong to different clonal lineages. In C. biroi, the production of individuals of a morphological subcaste specialized in reproduction is inversely proportional to colony-level fertility. As chemical signatures usually correlate with fertility and reproductive activity in social Hymenoptera, we asked whether CHCs could function as fertility-signaling primer pheromones determining larval subcaste fate in C. biroi. Interestingly, and contrary to findings for several other ant species, fertility and reproductive activity showed no correlation with chemical signatures, suggesting the absence of fertility related CHCs. This implies that other cues are responsible for subcaste differentiation in this species.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'Ethologie Expérimentale et Comparée, EA4443, Université Paris 13, Sorbonne Paris Cité, 99 avenue J.B. Clément, Villetaneuse, 93430, France, teseo@leec.univ-paris13.fr.
authors.forename: Serafino
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Teseo
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lecoutey
authors.forename: Daniel J C
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Kronauer
authors.forename: Abraham
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hefetz
authors.forename: Alain
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lenoir
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Jaisson
authors.forename: Nicolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Châline
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D001000:Ants / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006838:Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D010675:Pheromones / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D012098:Reproduction
chemical_list: D006838:Hydrocarbons; D010675:Pheromones
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