Using a mixed experimental and bioinformatics methodology, Romiguier and his colleagues generated a phylogenetic tree to reconstruct the evolutionary steps of the four Formica subgenera differentiation.
To unravel the nodes of a 150-years old debate, Jonathan Romiguier, with a group of researchers from the University of Lausanne, Montpellier, British Columbia and Helsinki, took advantage of a modern phylogenomic approach to finally solve the intricate relationship among paleartic Formica subgenera. This hypothesis is sustained by several modern researchers, but other scientists propose an alternative explanation, suggesting that parasitic colony founding evolved several times independently. The father of the theory of evolution suggested that slave-raiding in the genus Formica evolved progressively, through an intermediary step of so-called ‘temporary parasitism’. The evolutionary pathway towards slavery has been intriguing generations of natural scientists, and gave life to a discussion which finds its roots in Charles Darwin ‘ On the Origin of Species’ itself. Nobody can deny the fascination arising from the complexity of the social architecture which defines the life of the anthill, and the slave-raiding behaviour of some species of Formica outstands as a spectacular case of social parasitism.
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