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Understanding how reproductive conflict is resolved is central to understanding the evolution of cooperation (Ratnieks et al. 2006). The eusocial Hymenoptera (bees, ants, wasps) are particularly interesting in this respect. Their haplodiploid genetics (male haploid and females diploid) and social structure cause diverse and unusual colony kin structures and the potential for a wide range of conflicts. Conflict between the queen and the workers over sex allocation and the production of males appear to be particularly important (Ratnieks et al. 2006).

Kevin's work has focused upon reproductive conflict is the Vespinae (hornets and yellowjackets), the sister group of the more extensively studied Polistinae (paper wasps). The Vespinae are a relatively small group of four genera with a well-supported phylogeny: Vespa (23 species), Provespa (3 species), Dolichovespula (13 species) and Vespula (22 species). They have a similar basic biology, typically with an annual monogynous colony, enclosed paper nest, a morphologically distinct queen caste and workers that are unable to mate, facilitating across-species comparison based upon differences in kin structure (Foster et al. 1999, 2001).

A central part of Kevin's thesis work, with Francis Ratnieks, was assessing family structure in several species of vespine wasps (Foster et al. 1999, 2000, 2001), using this to make predictions about what kinds of reproductive conflicts are likely to occur, and then collecting further data to evaluate these predictions. This showed that kinship can be an important factor in the resolution of reproductive conflicts (Foster and Ratnieks 2000, 2001a), although naïve predictions based upon relatedness are not always fulfilled (Foster et al. 2006). In addition, they found evidence that workers will eat each others eggs in vespine wasp societies (Foster and Ratnieks 2000, 2001b). Such worker policing behaviour is thought to be a key factor in the resolution of internal conflicts of wasp societies. Tom Wenseleers has recently found further evidence that both relatedness and policing are important in the wasps.

• Ratnieks, F.L.W., Foster, K.R. and Wenseleers, T. 2006. Conflict resolution in insect societies. Annual Review of Entomology 51: 581-608 PDF
• Foster KR and Ratnieks FLW. 2001a. Paternity, reproduction and conflict in vespine wasps: a model system for testing kin selection predictions. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 50: 1-8. PDF
• Foster KR, Ratnieks FLW. 2001b. Convergent evolution of worker policing by egg eating in the honey bee and common wasp. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Series B, 268: 169-174. PDF
• Foster KR, Ratnieks FLW. 2001c. The effect of sex allocation biasing on the evolution of worker policing in hymenopteran societies. American Naturalist, 158: 615-623. PDF
• Foster KR, Ratnieks FLW, Gyllenstrand N, Thorén PA. 2001. Colony kin structure and male production in Dolichovespula wasps. Molecular Ecology, 10: 1003-1010. PDF
• Foster, K. R., Ratnieks, F. L. W. 2000. Facultative worker policing in a social wasp. Nature, 407: 692-693. PDF
• Foster KR. 2000 The conflict over male production in vespine wasps. Ph.D. Thesis, University of Sheffield.(7.0 Mb file) PDF
• Foster, K. R., Ratnieks, F. L. W., Raybould, A. F. 2000. Do hornets have zombie workers? Molecular Ecology, 9: 735-742. PDF
• Foster, K. R., Seppä, P., Ratnieks, F. L. W., Thorén, P. A. 1999. Low paternity in the hornet Vespa crabro indicates that multiple mating by queens is derived in vespine wasps. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 46: 252-257. PDF