Just before or after the transformation from larvae into adult bug, the individual releases a very stinky pellet that contains all of the built-up waste. Either the individual or special workers move quickly to dispose of this fecal pellet, the meconium. When a honeybee takes its first flight, it immediately releases its strong smelling meconium. Without such a clean and easy solution, other social insects have evolved another waste management tactic -- lifelong poop collectors. Both gall aphids and leafcutter ants have specialized castes whose members serve as these waste removers. "They process the colony's garbage and once they start doing this job they remain in it for the rest of their lives, being shunned by other workers," Jackson said, adding that honeybees seem to have evolved a more democratic process, whereby workers can change jobs after they reach a certain age. Stephen Martin, a postdoctoral researcher in Sheffield's Apiculture and Social Insect Laboratory, told Discovery News that the new paper is "refreshing," since other studies delving into the evolution of sociality mostly ignore the problem of waste management. "Their idea that the blind gut might have been a very important facilitator of social evolution is certainly well supported by their review of the data," Martin said. Jackson pointed out that "it's curious that this research area seems to be treated with amusement or revulsion by other researchers, and this is why its importance is so rarely acknowledged." Related Links: University of Sheffield Apiculture and Social Insect Laboratory |
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