« Previous AbstractSpitting out information: Trigona bees deposit saliva to signal resource locations    Next AbstractResponses to larval herbivory in the phenylpropanoid pathway of Ulmus minor are boosted by prior insect egg deposition »

J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol

Title:		Pheromone paths attached to the substrate in meliponine bees: helpful but not obligatory for recruitment success
Author(s):		Schorkopf DL; Morawetz L; Bento JM; Zucchi R; Barth FG;
Address:		"Department of Neurobiology, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse, Austria. Sylvilagusbrasiliensis@gmx.at"
Journal Title:		J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol
Year:		2011
Volume:		20110329
Issue:		7
Page Number:		755 - 764
DOI:		10.1007/s00359-011-0638-5
ISSN/ISBN:		1432-1351 (Electronic) 0340-7594 (Linking)
Abstract:		"In contrast to marking of the location of resources or sexual partners using single-spot pheromone sources, pheromone paths attached to the substrate and assisting orientation are rarely found among flying organisms. However, they do exist in meliponine bees (Apidae, Apinae, Meliponini), commonly known as stingless bees, which represent a group of important pollinators in tropical forests. Worker bees of several Neotropical meliponine species, especially in the genus Scaptotrigona Moure 1942, deposit pheromone paths on substrates between highly profitable resources and their nest. In contrast to past results and claims, we find that these pheromone paths are not an indispensable condition for successful recruitment but rather a means to increase the success of recruiters in persuading their nestmates to forage food at a particular location. Our results are relevant to a speciation theory in scent path-laying meliponine bees, such as Scaptotrigona. In addition, the finding that pheromone path-laying bees are able to recruit to food locations even across barriers such as large bodies of water affects tropical pollination ecology and theories on the evolution of resource communication in insect societies with a flying worker caste"
Keywords:		"Animal Communication Animals Bees/*physiology Behavior, Animal/*physiology Feeding Behavior/physiology Flight, Animal/physiology Pheromones/*physiology Tropical Climate;"
Notes:		"MedlineSchorkopf, Dirk Louis P Morawetz, Linde Bento, Jose M S Zucchi, Ronaldo Barth, Friedrich G eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Germany 2011/03/30 J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol. 2011 Jul; 197(7):755-64. doi: 10.1007/s00359-011-0638-5. Epub 2011 Mar 29"