Abstract
The inhibitory potential of primary and secondary reproductives was studied using half-orphaned colonies of Kalotermes flavicollis. Both primary and secondary reproductives (neotenics) were equally effective in inhibiting the development of replacement reproductives. Single females totally inhibited the development of female secondary reproductives but did not affect the development of male secondary reproductives. Single males had neither a stimulatory nor inhibitory effect on the development of secondary reproductives. The inhibitory ability of pairs of primary reproductives shortly after dealation and at the stage of incipient colony formation (couple with the first batch of eggs) was also examined. While pairs of freshly dealated reproductives were not able to inhibit the development of neotenics, pairs of primary reproductives that had their first batch of eggs, fully inhibited the development of neotenics.
Highlights
The observation that in Kalotermes flavicollis the king and queen prevent the differentiation of neotenics in a colony was published by Grassi & Sandias (1893) and reviewed by Lüscher (1974, 1977) and Springhetti (1985)
Neotenic females totally inhibited the development of other female neotenics (Kruskal-Wallis test, H = 20.67, P < 0.0001)
There was no significant difference in the number of female neotenics that developed in groups with a single male or totally orphaned control (Dunn’s Multiple Comparison Test, P > 0.05)
Summary
The observation that in Kalotermes flavicollis the king and queen prevent the differentiation of neotenics in a colony was published by Grassi & Sandias (1893) and reviewed by Lüscher (1974, 1977) and Springhetti (1985). They supposed that this is achieved by means of inhibitory pheromones. According to Lüscher (1956a, b, 1964) neotenic females are capable of inhibiting the differentiation of other female neotenics to a certain extent, and according to Grassé & Noirot (1960) primary females prevent the development of female neotenics completely. The secondary reproductives and their inhibitory effects in other species were reviewed by Myles (1999)
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