The Experts below are selected from a list of 273 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Heinjo J. During - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Exploitation of environmental heterogeneity by spatial Division of Labour in a clonal plant.
Functional Ecology, 1996Co-Authors: J.f. Struefer, H. De Kroon, Heinjo J. DuringAbstract:1. The economic principle of spatial Division of Labour comprises two basic features, specialization in the performance of specific tasks and close co-operation by potentially independent, spatially separated subunits of a higher-level organizational system. Space-economic theory predicts large benefits from such a spatial Division of Labour if essential resources are heterogeneously distributed and if high-availability zones for these resources do not spatially coincide. In this paper, evidence is provided that a spatial Division of Labour may also occur in clonal plants growing in spatially heterogeneous environments. 2. Clonal fragments of the stoloniferous herb Trifolium repens L., consisting of two interconnected groups of ramets, were exposed to contrasting levels of light and water supply. Ramet groups specialized morphologically in the uptake of the locally most abundant resource and they exchanged both water and assimilates. This Division of Labour significantly increased the performance of the entire plant in terms of fitness-related traits such as biomass and atonal offspring production. 3. It is concluded that spatial Division of Labour may contribute to the apparent success of clonal plant species in many natural habitats by enabling them to efficiently exploit environmental patchiness. The implications of these results for the understanding of foraging strategies of clonal plants and the general notion of habitat heterogeneity in plant ecology are discussed.
Rebeca B. Rosengaus - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Ecology, evolution and Division of Labour in social insects
Animal Behaviour, 1997Co-Authors: James F. A. Traniello, Rebeca B. RosengausAbstract:Caste and Division of Labour have formed the core of the study of the organization of insect societies for the past four decades. Indeed, the description and analysis of task allocation between colony members are fundamental to understanding the organization of a complex biological system whose functioning depends upon the behavioural integration of a potentially large number of individuals. Recent research has emphasized the dynamic nature and fluidity of task allocation (Gordon 1989, 1995), the role of self-organization (Page & Mitchell 1991) and the physiology and genetics of task partitioning (Page & Robinson 1991; Robinson 1992). The study of caste and Division of Labour, however, has historically been established in the evolution and ecology of social insects (Oster & Wilson 1978; Calabi & Traniello 1989; Holldobler & Wilson 1990; Schmid-Hempel 1992; Tschinkel 1993; Beshers & Traniello 1994). Although the basic tenets of caste theory were first formulated to explain the origin and significance of physical castes, caste theory has also provided a conceptual framework to examine the adaptiveness of age-based Division of Labour, although this aspect of caste theory has rarely been tested and is thus poorly understood (Schmid-Hempel 1992). The theory predicts that the behavioural characteristics of individuals, including worker behavioural development, have been shaped as part of the overall evolutionary design of a colony of a given species. As Holldobler & Wilson (1990, page 312) have stated, ‘Each species has its own distinctive pattern of temporal polyethism’. (In this commentary we consider the terms ‘age-based Division of Labour’ and ‘temporal polyethism’ to be interchangeable, and follow the definitions and usage of Oster & Wilson (1978) and Holldobler & Wilson (1990). We also believe that these terms and the social phenomena they describe adequately cover aspects of worker behavioural development and task performance flexibility, and therefore we prefer not to adopt Franks’ (1994) definition of temporal polyethism). The recent dialogue between Robinson et al. (1994) and Franks & Tofts (1994) provides a critical discussion of theoretical, genetic and physiological analyses of age-based Division of Labour; their debate on temporal polyethism relies on socially advanced hymenopteran species as model systems. The genetic and physiological approaches described by Robinson et al. (1994) focus on the mechanisms of polyethism and are relevant to the evolution and ecology of Division of Labour, because they detail the proximate basis of what appear to be adaptive patterns of behavioural development. Franks & Tofts (1994), in contrast, suggested that the behavioural schedules commonly identified as age polyethism emerge as a consequence of the rules workers follow in their search for tasks to perform in a colony. Specifically, they attempted to identify a simple regulatory process involving nest design and the spatial array of tasks to be carried out to explain polyethism (Tofts & Franks 1992; Sendova-Franks & Franks 1993; Franks & Tofts 1994; reviewed in Bourke & Franks 1995). Provocatively asserting that age polyethism ‘is a myth’ and that the relationship between age and task performance is not causal, Franks (1994) advocated a paradigm shift in the study of polyethism. We argue, as have other researchers, that patterns of Division of Labour in the social insects appear to be highly variable and species-specific. And, as has long been recognized, we acknowledge that Division of Labour may be related to the Correspondence: J. F. A. Traniello, Department of Biology, Boston University, 5 Cummington Street, Boston, MA 02215, U.S.A. (email: jft@bio.bu.edu).
Anna Dornhaus - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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spatial organization and Division of Labour in the bumblebee bombus impatiens
Animal Behaviour, 2009Co-Authors: Jennifer M Jandt, Anna DornhausAbstract:Individuals in many types of animal groups show both reproductive and task-related Division of Labour. In some social insect species, such Division of Labour may be related to the spatial organization of workers inside the nest. We examined colonies of bumblebees and found that (1) 11–13% of workers maintained small spatial fidelity zones inside the nest, and all workers tended to remain at a specific distance from the colony centre independent of their age; (2) smaller individuals maintained smaller spatial zones and tended to be closer to the centre; and (3) individuals that were more likely to perform the in-nest task of larval feeding tended to remain in the centre of the nest, whereas foragers were more often found on the periphery of the nest when not foraging. Individuals that performed other tasks did not maintain a predictable distance to the centre, and there was no evidence that spatial preferences changed over time. Instead, spatial patterns may result from inherent differences between individuals in terms of activity level, and may be a self-organized sorting mechanism that influences Division of Labour among workers.
Guy A. Cooper - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Division of Labour and the evolution of extreme specialization.
Nature ecology & evolution, 2018Co-Authors: Guy A. Cooper, Stuart A. WestAbstract:Division of Labour is a common feature of social groups, from biofilms to complex animal societies. However, we lack a theoretical framework that can explain why Division of Labour has evolved on certain branches of the tree of life but not others. Here, we model the Division of Labour over a cooperative behaviour, considering both when it should evolve and the extent to which the different types should become specialized. We found that: (1) Division of Labour is usually—but not always—favoured by high efficiency benefits to specialization and low within-group conflict; and (2) natural selection favours extreme specialization, where some individuals are completely dependent on the helping behaviour of others. We make a number of predictions, several of which are supported by the existing empirical data, from microbes and animals, while others suggest novel directions for empirical work. More generally, we show how Division of Labour can lead to mutual dependence between different individuals and hence drive major evolutionary transitions, such as those to multicellularity and eusociality. Division of Labour is common in social groups from microbes to animals. Here, the authors show that natural selection favours extreme specialization, suggesting that Division of Labour may drive major evolutionary transitions.
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Division of Labour and the evolution of complex groups
2018Co-Authors: Guy A. CooperAbstract:Division of Labour occurs when cooperating individuals specialise to perform different roles. This kind of behaviour is encountered widely across the tree of life, from the separate functions of distinct genes within a genome to the specialised castes of eusocial insect societies. However, Division of Labour is not simply a ubiquitous social behaviour across the natural world. Instead, it has also been a critical factor in the evolution of more and more complex forms of life. When individuals divide Labour, they become more dependent upon the cooperation of others. When the mutual dependence scales tip such that individuals can no longer survive and reproduce outside the group, then a transition in individuality may occur such that the group itself begins to act as an evolutionary individual in its own right. For example, the Division of Labour between reproductive germ cells and sterile somatic cells facilitated the evolution of obligate multicellular organisms. A similar Division between reproductive queens and sterile workers underlies the evolution of eusocial insect societies. As a consequence, the study of Division of Labour not only provides explanations for a diverse behaviour but can also help us to understand why some forms of life have become so complex. In this thesis, I have employed kin-selection theory to explain the evolution of Division of Labour between helpers and reproductives. I first show when such Division of Labour is favoured over uniform behaviour and draw conclusions about the degree of specialisation that is expected to evolve. I next consider the biological factors that can lead to the evolution of social groups comprised predominantly of sterile helpers. I then develop evolutionary theory to explain why Labour dividers may employ environmental information to optimally coordinate their allocation of Labour. In much of this work, I consider the effect of relatedness on the evolution of Division and its various forms. I finish the thesis with an opinion piece on the different ways that relatedness may be modelled in social evolution theory.
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Division of Labour in microorganisms: an evolutionary perspective
Nature reviews. Microbiology, 2016Co-Authors: Stuart A. West, Guy A. CooperAbstract:The Division of Labour, whereby individuals within a group specialize in certain tasks, has long been appreciated as central to the evolution of complex biological societies. In recent years, several examples of Division of Labour in microorganisms have arisen, which suggests that this strategy may also be important in microbial species. In this Opinion article, we explore the set of conditions that define Division of Labour and propose that cooperation between different phenotypes is a defining feature of Division of Labour. Furthermore, we discuss how clarifying what constitutes Division of Labour highlights key evolutionary questions, including what form Division of Labour takes and why it is favoured by natural selection.
J.f. Struefer - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Exploitation of environmental heterogeneity by spatial Division of Labour in a clonal plant.
Functional Ecology, 1996Co-Authors: J.f. Struefer, H. De Kroon, Heinjo J. DuringAbstract:1. The economic principle of spatial Division of Labour comprises two basic features, specialization in the performance of specific tasks and close co-operation by potentially independent, spatially separated subunits of a higher-level organizational system. Space-economic theory predicts large benefits from such a spatial Division of Labour if essential resources are heterogeneously distributed and if high-availability zones for these resources do not spatially coincide. In this paper, evidence is provided that a spatial Division of Labour may also occur in clonal plants growing in spatially heterogeneous environments. 2. Clonal fragments of the stoloniferous herb Trifolium repens L., consisting of two interconnected groups of ramets, were exposed to contrasting levels of light and water supply. Ramet groups specialized morphologically in the uptake of the locally most abundant resource and they exchanged both water and assimilates. This Division of Labour significantly increased the performance of the entire plant in terms of fitness-related traits such as biomass and atonal offspring production. 3. It is concluded that spatial Division of Labour may contribute to the apparent success of clonal plant species in many natural habitats by enabling them to efficiently exploit environmental patchiness. The implications of these results for the understanding of foraging strategies of clonal plants and the general notion of habitat heterogeneity in plant ecology are discussed.