Cheaters—genotypes that gain a selective advantage by taking the benefits of the social
contributions of others while avoiding the costs of cooperating—are thought to pose a major …

Distinguishing nest-mates from non-nest-mates underlies key animal behaviours, such as
territoriality, altruism and the evolution of sociality. Despite its importance, there is very little …

The origin of sterile worker castes, resulting in eusociality, represents one of the major
evolutionary transitions in the history of life. Understanding how eusociality has evolved is …

In social contexts, the ability to recognize and discriminate among individuals is
advantageous, because it allows individuals to adjust their behaviour so as to enhance both …

The genetic mechanisms behind aggressive behaviors are important for understanding the
formation of dominance hierarchies, and thus social systems in general. Studies into the …

How animals recognize conspecific individuals has important outcomes in many contexts,
but interactions among group members are particularly important. Two recognition criteria …

When animals live in groups, the ability to discriminate group members from nonmembers
allows individuals to adjust their behaviour in ways that enhance both individual and group …

Dominance hierarchies represent some of nature's most rudimentary social structures, and
aggression is key to their establishment in many animal species. Previous studies have …

Social cooperation requires increased tolerance of other individuals. We used social and
solitary individuals of the facultatively eusocial bee Megalopta genalis to compare …

Research on cuticular hydrocarbons of solitary and eusocial bees has greatly contributed to
our understanding of the evolution of eusociality. However, to understand the transition from …