DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Unraveling the Origin of Social Parasitism in Megalomyrmex Ants: A Phylogenetic Study Using Morphological and Molecular Characters

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Social parasitism, the exploitation of a society by other social organisms, is awidespread phenomenon that has evolved independently numerous times withinmany social systems. The monophyletic Megalomyrmex genus is an excellentsystem to investigate how parasitism evolves in a social society. Using an integrativeapproach, phylogenic analysis will reveal the origins of social parasitism, whilebehavioral, ecological, and venom alkaloid information will help distinguish thecharacteristics necessary for social parasitism to evolve and be maintained. Thefollowing questions will be investigated: 1) Did social parasitism evolve once inthe Megalomyrmex genus? 2) Did social parasitism arise from behaviorsrelated to a primarily predatory lifestyle?Merit:By gathering these data the Megalomyrmex system will be comparable with otherparasite systems, and will thus broaden our understanding of the evolutionaryprocesses associated with the onset and maintenance of host-parasite associations.Impacts:This project will continue to incorporate undergraduate mentorship and training.Ongoing collaborations will strengthen ties between Brazilian and Americaninstitutions while expediting and developing this research. In addition, voucherspecimens have and will be deposited at one domestic and five foreign museums.These collaborations and associations will not only make the proposed researchfeasible but will effectively disseminate scientific knowledge.