Abstract
The theory of kin selection1, which revolutionized the study of social behaviour, requires the discrimination of relatives from non-relatives. Many animals possess this ability, but the underlying neurobiological mechanisms have not been studied. Here we provide evidence for the neurochemical modulation of nestmate recognition: treatment with octopamine agonists improves the discrimination of related nestmates from unrelated non-nestmates in honeybees.
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Robinson, G., Heuser, L., LeConte, Y. et al. Neurochemicals aid bee nestmate recognition. Nature 399, 534–535 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1038/21095
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/21095
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