| Title: | Chemical reproductive traits of diploid Bombus terrestris males: Consequences on bumblebee conservation |
| Author(s): | Lecocq T; Gerard M; Maebe K; Brasero N; Dehon L; Smagghe G; Valterova I; De Meulemeester T; Rasmont P; Michez D; |
| Address: | "Laboratory of Zoology, Research Institute of Biosciences, University of Mons, Mons, France. Research Unit Animal and Functionalities of Animal Products (URAFPA), University of Lorraine - INRA, 2 Avenue de la Foret de Haye, BP 172, F-54505, Vandoeuvre-les-Nancy, France. Department of Crop Protection, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure links 653, B-9000, Ghent, Belgium. Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Flamingovo nam 2, CZ 166 10, Prague, Czech Republic. Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Darwinweg 2, Postbus 9517, 2300 RA Leiden, the Netherlands" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1744-7917 (Electronic) 1672-9609 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "The current bumblebee decline leads to inbreeding in populations that fosters a loss of allelic diversity and diploid male production. As diploid males are viable and their offspring are sterile, bumblebee populations can quickly fall in a vortex of extinction. In this article, we investigate for the first time a potential premating mechanism through a major chemical reproductive trait (male cephalic labial gland secretions) that could prevent monandrous virgin queens from mating with diploid males. We focus our study on the cephalic labial gland secretions of diploid and haploid males of Bombus terrestris (L.). Contrary to initial expectations, our results do not show any significant differentiation of cephalic labial gland secretions between diploid and haploid specimens. Queens seem therefore to be unable to avoid mating with diploid males based on their compositions of cephalic labial gland secretions. This suggests that the vortex of extinction of diploid males could not be stopped through premating avoidance based on the cephalic labial gland secretions but other mechanisms could avoid mating between diploid males and queens" |
| Keywords: | "Animals Bees/*genetics/*metabolism Conservation of Natural Resources Female Inbreeding Male *Ploidies Scent Glands/*metabolism Sex Attractants/*chemistry Sexual Behavior, Animal/physiology bee decline bumblebees conservation diploid males premating recogn;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineLecocq, Thomas Gerard, Maxence Maebe, Kevin Brasero, Nicolas Dehon, Lauren Smagghe, Guy Valterova, Irena De Meulemeester, Thibaut Rasmont, Pierre Michez, Denis eng Australia 2016/03/10 Insect Sci. 2017 Aug; 24(4):623-630. doi: 10.1111/1744-7917.12332. Epub 2016 Jun 7" |
