DIVISION-OF-LABOR AMONG A COHORT OF YOUNG INDIVIDUALS IN A PRIMITIVELY EUSOCIAL WASP

Age polyethism has recently been demonstrated in the primitively eusoc ial wasp Ropalidia marginata, and it has been shown that workers alloc ate tasks based more on their relative age rather than on their absolu te age, thus providing flexibility to division of labor. The flexibili ty of division of labor and the respective roles of absolute and relat ive ages is further evaluated here by creating colonies of only young individuals (young-cohort colonies). The results show that workers in young-cohort colonies can forage at an earlier age, in larger numbers and with a higher probability and frequency. This confirms that divisi on of labor in the colony can indeed be independent of absolute age. T he results also show that relative age governs the probability of task performance while absolute age governs the frequency of task performa nce. The constraints posed by absolute age in the organization of work in an insect colony and the flexibility lent to it by relative age ar e discussed.