Evolution of sociality by natural selection on variances in reproductive fitness: evidence from a social bee
Abstract
The Central Limit Theorem (CLT) is a statistical principle that states that as the
number of repeated samples from any population increase, the variance among sample means will
decrease and means will become more normally distributed. It has been conjectured that the CLT
has the potential to provide benefits for group living in some animals via greater predictability in
food acquisition, if the number of foraging bouts increases with group size. The potential existence
of benefits for group living derived from a purely statistical principle is highly intriguing and it has
implications for the origins of sociality.
Description
© 2007 Stevens et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
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