Selection For Protection In An Ant-plant Mutualism: Host Sanctions, Modularity, And A Principal-agent Game

How does one species get another species to do what it wants? For example, how do plants convince some animals to carry away seeds?

We answer this question with an ant-plant symbiosis, where the plant houses an ant colony in exchange for protection against other insects that would eat the plant. We find that for each successful bout of protection the plant rewards its ants with a unit of housing, but withholds payment when the ant fails to protect.

Thus, evolution solves the problem of cooperation by letting plants hire ants under a 'piecework' payment scheme that resembles many human employment contracts.


by Mr DP Edwards, Dr M Hassall, Professor W Sutherland and Dr. W. Yu (rspb.2005.3273)


Tim Watson

tim.watsonroyalsoc.ac.uk

Royal Society

royalsoc.ac.uk


Help us complete a Work and Well Being Survey that is Collaborating in. We are getting no financial remuneration for this project:
Click Here to Go to the Survey