Parasites and Insects: Aspects of Social Behavior

Abstract

Parasites and social insects are dominant players in terrestrial ecosystems, but the impact of parasites on social behavior remained largely unexplored until relatively recently. Over the last few decades, an increasing number of researchers have examined the relationships between parasitism and social behavior. Parasites may impact on the breeding system of social animals, which then has implications for the structure and behavior of social groups. Division of labor – a key feature in the success of insect societies – may also have been driven by the pressures of parasitism, with implications for foraging behavior, adaptive suicide, behavioral fever, and undertaking behavior. Most recently, exciting new work is demonstrating how social immunity and the classical immune system may explain interaction behavior within societies. Behavior ultimately determines the reproductive success of animals, and thus the impact of parasites on behavior within and between social groups will have far-reaching effects.