SuperCooperators by Martin Nowak

Author:Martin Nowak [Martin Nowak]
Language: fra
Format: epub
Publisher: Free Press
Published: 2011-03-06T23:00:00+00:00

GENESIS OF SUPERORGANISMS

Superorganisms arise from the initial formation of groups, along with a minimum and necessary combination of preadaptive traits, such as the creation and defense of a nest. Mutations guaranteed the persistence of the group, most likely by preventing ants from leaving the nest. As a result of what Wilson calls “spring-loaded preadaptations,” a primitive form of eusociality was established. This was honed and elaborated as emergent traits caused by the interaction of group members were shaped through natural selection by environmental forces. Finally group-level selection drives changes in the colony that result in sophisticated features such as fungi gardens and aphid herds.

Given the discussions about inclusive fitness in chapter 5, I should underline why this model is different. With our new mathematical model we see very clearly why it is not simply “relatedness” that drives the evolution of eusociality. In many solitary species there may have been mutations that make daughters stay with the nest. But whether or not one such species makes the step toward eusociality cannot be explained by relatedness alone because in all of those attempts the daughters are equally related to their mothers. Instead, it is down to parameters of life history, such as an increased rate of laying eggs and an increased longevity of the queen in the presence of workers, that really determine whether or not natural selection favors eusociality.

Finally, it is fascinating to contrast two-legged and six-legged society. Both owe their success to cooperation and division of labor. Both rely on multilevel selection, where there has been competition between groups. But, of course, ants are ruled by instinct alone while, thanks to language, we also have swiftly evolving cultures. Before we feel too smug, we should remember that after only 200,000 years, we humans are in danger of overwhelming our planet while the ants have lived in harmony with it for 100 million years.

Wilson likes to point out that both our civilization and that of the leaf-cutter owe their existence to agriculture. What is remarkable is that while our relationship with plants catapulted our species out of its hunter-gatherer lifestyle around 10,000 years ago, some social insects had achieved this transition 60 million years earlier. There may be parallels between the scenarios of animal and human eusocial evolution, and they are, we believe, well worth examining to shed light on how we made the step from wandering tribes of hunter-gatherers to hamlets, towns, and cities. Queen leaf-cutter, who rules over the greatest super-organism, still has much to teach us.

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