Question

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Kin selection was used to explain the evolution of eusociality. Now we know that in some eusocial species, including honeybees, queens mate multiple times, i.e., polyandry. In your own words, how might polyandry weaken the kin selection explanation for the evolution of eusociality?

Answer 1

Eusocial species are those in which proper division of labour, care of offsprings and overlapping generations are kept at their very best position in habitat. Kin selection means putting the needs of other members of the species like relatives or other blood line members among them at the utmost priority and caring them for successful reproduction even it costs degradation of their own health.Now in honey bees , polyandry is adopted and this causes mating on one superior queen bee with many same male honey bees in a single beehive. This weakens the kin selection because at time of adversity, the other worker bees are designated to protect the queen bee instead of any other male bees in the beehive. Due to mating with a single bee, most of the time, males loose their ability to mate with the bees. So this superior inferior levels in the beehive doesnot go well with the kin selection and hence evolution of eusociality is also effected as many areas of differentiation are not being properly followed in beehives.

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