Randy wrote:
>As far as the EHB, my impression from the literature is that egglaying by some workers is fairly normal.  I think that perhaps ovary development is more on a continuum, rather than clear nonfunctionality.

To further complicate the recipe, add "trophic eggs" and stir

> In most meliponine bees of the Western Hemisphere and in one African genus, trophic eggs are laid by workers. These eggs are inviable, developed only to be eaten by the queen of the colony. In many species, these are the main food of queens. Trophic eggs produced by meliponine colony workers are analogous to the secretions from food-producing glands in Meliponini and Apis workers.  Beig (1972) describes Trigona workers laying both trophic eggs and viable male eggs in queenright colonies.

The evolution of food-producing glands in eusocial bees
Thomas C. Webster and Ying-Shin Peng
Journal of Evolutionary Biology. 1:2 165-176 1988

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