only help the queen when no other options are present. In this case, subordinates work for unrelated queens even when other options may be present. No other social insect submits to unrelated queens in this way. This seemingly unfavorable behavior parallels some vertebrate systems. This unrelated assistance may be evidence of altruism in P. dominula. The majority of nests had one or more females that were unrelated, especially in the winter before nests are formed and workers born. The nests tend to form from foundresses of different nests from previous years. The foundresses are also found overwintering with other wasp species, showing why unrelated wasps are found during winter. However, after winter when the nests are starting to be formed, an increase in relatedness in the nests is seen, which could result from foundresses searching for more related sisters, instead of unrelated wasps. After winter, as wasps leave their winter areas and return to their nests, an increase in relatedness occurs in the early nest phase. In later stages of the nest, more unrelated wasps are found, which could be because new wasps join established nests. Recognition Use of cutical hydrocarbons P. dominula females are able to distinguish between nestmates and non-nestmates. Triads of wasps show more discrimination and aggression toward non-nestmates than dyads of wasps. In triads, aggression is increased because a defense of the nest can be shared with other nestmates, but for an individual, the cost of the aggression is greater than the benefit of the defense. Insect body surface is coated with cuticular hydrocarbons (CHC) for waterproofing. These chemicals also contribute to recognition among individuals, kin, and nest mates. The same cuticle that the adults have are coated on the nests, allowing the wasps to recognize their home. An analysis of the differences in CHC profiles between dominant and subordinate females found that while differences are not clear at the early stages of nest founding, these differences become prominent upon worker emergence. The CHC profiles of the dominant female exhibit a greater proportion of distinctive unsaturated alkenes of longer chain length compared to those of subordinates. When the queen is removed, the replacement queen's CHC profile becomes similar to that of the original queen. Upon analyzing whether CHC is a signal for fertility or dominance, researchers concluded that it is a signal for dominance because subordinates with developed ovaries still exhibited profiles that differed from those