Under haplodiploidy, which statement about relatedness and social behavior is true?

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Multiple Choice

Under haplodiploidy, which statement about relatedness and social behavior is true?

In haplodiploidy, the genetic system shifts how relatedness is distributed among family members, which is why kin selection can favor helping relatives. Females are diploid and inherit half their genes from each parent, while males are haploid and come from unfertilized eggs, carrying only the mother’s genes. This makes sisters share a large portion of their genes with each other—about three-quarters on average—whereas a sister shares about half with her own offspring. That higher relatedness between sisters means helping a sister can boost an individual's inclusive fitness more than reproducing would, promoting altruistic behavior among sisters. The statement aligns with this pattern. The idea that kin selection effects disappear with haplodiploidy isn’t true; rather, haplodiploidy creates a situation where relatedness among sisters is particularly high, which can drive altruism. The notion that males are equally related to all siblings as females ignores the sex-specific relatedness differences inherent in this system, and the claim about brothers being more related to sisters than to their own offspring contradicts the typical relatedness values under haplodiploidy.

In haplodiploidy, the genetic system shifts how relatedness is distributed among family members, which is why kin selection can favor helping relatives. Females are diploid and inherit half their genes from each parent, while males are haploid and come from unfertilized eggs, carrying only the mother’s genes. This makes sisters share a large portion of their genes with each other—about three-quarters on average—whereas a sister shares about half with her own offspring. That higher relatedness between sisters means helping a sister can boost an individual's inclusive fitness more than reproducing would, promoting altruistic behavior among sisters.

The statement aligns with this pattern. The idea that kin selection effects disappear with haplodiploidy isn’t true; rather, haplodiploidy creates a situation where relatedness among sisters is particularly high, which can drive altruism. The notion that males are equally related to all siblings as females ignores the sex-specific relatedness differences inherent in this system, and the claim about brothers being more related to sisters than to their own offspring contradicts the typical relatedness values under haplodiploidy.

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