Perez Rémy, Aron Serge
Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium.
Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc. 2020 Dec;95(6):1535-1553. doi: 10.1111/brv.12628. Epub 2020 Jul 6.
Thermal stress is a major driver of population declines and extinctions. Shifts in thermal regimes create new environmental conditions, leading to trait adaptation, population migration, and/or species extinction. Extensive research has examined thermal adaptations in terrestrial arthropods. However, little is known about social insects, despite their major role in ecosystems. It is only within the last few years that the adaptations of social insects to thermal stress have received attention. Herein, we discuss what is currently known about thermal tolerance and thermal adaptation in social insects - namely ants, termites, social bees, and social wasps. We describe the behavioural, morphological, physiological, and molecular adaptations that social insects have evolved to cope with thermal stress. We examine individual and collective responses to both temporary and persistent changes in thermal conditions and explore the extent to which individuals can exploit genetic variability to acclimatise. Finally, we consider the costs and benefits of sociality in the face of thermal stress, and we propose some future research directions that should advance our knowledge of individual and collective thermal adaptations in social insects.
热应激是导致种群数量下降和灭绝的主要因素。热状况的变化创造了新的环境条件，导致性状适应、种群迁移和/或物种灭绝。大量研究探讨了陆生节肢动物的热适应情况。然而，尽管社会性昆虫在生态系统中发挥着重要作用，但人们对它们却知之甚少。直到最近几年，社会性昆虫对热应激的适应才受到关注。在此，我们讨论目前已知的社会性昆虫（即蚂蚁、白蚁、群居蜜蜂和群居黄蜂）的耐热性和热适应情况。我们描述了社会性昆虫为应对热应激而进化出的行为、形态、生理和分子适应。我们研究了个体和群体对热条件临时和持续变化的反应，并探讨个体利用遗传变异性进行适应的程度。最后，我们考虑面对热应激时社会性的成本和收益，并提出一些未来的研究方向，这些方向应能增进我们对社会性昆虫个体和群体热适应的了解。
