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Thelytoky


Thelytoky (from the Greek thēlys "female" and tokos "birth") is a type of parthenogenesis in which females are produced from unfertilized eggs, as for example in aphids. Thelytokous parthenogenesis is rare among animals and reported in about 1,500 species, about 1 in 1000 of described animal species, according to a 1984 study. It is more common in invertebrates, like arthropods, but it can occur in vertebrates, including salamanders, fish, and reptiles such as some whiptail lizards.

Thelytoky can occur by different mechanisms, each of which has a different impact on the level of homozygosity. It can be induced in Hymenoptera by the bacteria Wolbachia and Cardinium, and has also been described in several groups of Hymenoptera, including Cynipidae, Tenthredinidae, Aphelinidae, Ichneumonidae, Apidae and Formicidae.

Hymenoptera (ants, bees, and wasps) have a haplodiploid sex-determination system. They produce haploid males from unfertilized eggs through arrhenotokous parthenogenesis. However, in a few social hymenopterans, queens or workers are capable of producing diploid female offspring by thelytoky. The daughters produced may or may not be complete clones of their mother depending on the type of parthenogenesis that takes place. The offspring can develop into either queens or workers. Examples of such species include the Cape bee, Apis mellifera capensis, Mycocepurus smithii and clonal raider ant, Cerapachys biroi.


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