Direct and indirect benefits of joining and helping behavior in newly-established colonies of primitively eusocial wasps

Many animals societies are characterized by reproductive division of labor, in which reproductive individuals gain direct fitness benefits while non-reproductive helpers gain fitness indirectly by aiding the reproduction of their relatives. However, in primitively eusocial societies, dominance hierarchies are dynamic and subordinate helpers are physiologically capable of reproducing. Thus, helpers may employ alternative reproductive tactics, which may be influenced by differences in the reproductive capability of females and the potential fitness pay-offs to helping in colonies where group composition is changing. Here, we investigate the factors that influence the choice of joining a nest as a helper during the initiation of nest construction and colony establishment in a subtropical population of the primitively eusocial wasp, Mischocyttarus mexicanus. We specifically tested the effect of body size, reproductive potential, and immediate egg-laying potential on the choice of nest founding either as a solitary foundress, as a group of foundresses or joining a nest to become a helper. Further, by using Next Generation Sequencing, we are currently determining the relationship between relatedness among group members and helping behavior. Our results will provide crucial insights into the pay-off of joining a nest to become a helper such as future inheritance of the nest, as well as both indirect and direct fitness benefits.