Fig. 1
From: Costs of reproduction are present but latent in eusocial bumblebee queens
Outline of experimental design to test for costs of reproduction in Bombus terrestris queens. a Experimental treatments: R: Removal queens: eggs removed and counted; C: Control queens: eggs removed, counted, and replaced. Day 1 was the first day that new egg cells were observed in all colonies. b RNA sample collection strategy. G1, G2: random subgroups of queens within treatments. TP1, TP2: time-points for sampling of queens for RNA extraction (R queens: TP1 on day 37, TP2 on day 85; C queens: TP1 on day 89, TP2 on day 134). TP1G, TP2G: subsets of queens sampled for RNA extraction at TP1 and TP2, respectively. One R queen (Q1) was not assigned to G1 or G2, and was used to provide life-history data only. One C queen (Q57 in the G1 subgroup) was censored and therefore not included in longevity analyses or sampled for RNA. Final sample sizes were: R:TP1G (N = 6), R:TP2G (N = 6), R:life-history (N = 2 + 9 + 12 + 1 = 24); C:TP1G (N = 6), C:TP2G (N = 6), C:life-history (N = 2 + 9 + 12 − 1 = 22). See ‘Methods’ for full details