3.3 | Nestmate discrimination within polygyne colonies
After 18 hours in experimental colonies with workers, significantly more nestmate brood remained compared with non-nestmate brood (Fig 4a; t5 = 3.883, P = 0.012). The number of non-nestmate brood diminished by 27% while nestmate brood diminished by only 14%. No dead larvae were found in the colonies.
Likewise, the feeding of larvae by workers differed depending on the relationship between workers and brood. A higher percentage of nestmate brood were fed compared with non-nestmate brood (Fig 4b; t5 = 3.246, P = 0.023).