No evidence of pre-copulatory mate choice by gynes in the facultatively parthenogenetic ant Cataglyphis cursor

摘要

Virgin queens (gynes) of the ant Cataglyphis cursor mate on the ground at the nest entrance, where they benefit from the protection of nestmate workers. By carrying out mating tests in the laboratory, we show that gynes mate with the first males they encounter, suggesting the absence of pre-copulatory mate choice by gynes. This is in agreement with the recent finding that workers behave aggressively towards foreign males and could thereby exercise a form of inclusive mate choice, which could replace pre-copulatory mate choice by gynes.