Periodic mass flights of the giant honey bee,<i>Apis dorsata</i>

Woyke, J.; Kruk, C.; Wilde, J.; Wilde, Maria

doi:10.1080/00218839.2004.11101134

Cited by 17 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Similar to the observations by Woyke et al (2004), we found an increase in MFAs with colony growth and an increase in the thickness of the Dynamics of the bee curtain in Apis florea curtain. Both factors likely affect heat accumulation within the curtain itself.…”

Section: Comments On the Function Of Mfasupporting

confidence: 79%

“…Description of MFAs in the giant honey bee, A. dorsata and A. laboriosa , mostly focused on the flight behavior, but there are two studies that reported an increased disorder and the occurrence of Dynamics of the bee curtain in Apis florea gaps in the bee curtain shortly before a MFA (Woyke et al 2003(Woyke et al , 2004. MFAs in A. florea and the giant honey bee species appear to be very similar with respect to flight behavior, but there might be differences in the initiation and preparation of the MFA due to differences in the organization of the curtain and the nest.…”

Section: Occurrence and Temporal Dynamics Of Mfamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Structural and temporal dynamics of the bee curtain in the open-nesting honey bee species, Apis florea

2016

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-Workers of open-nesting honey bee species form a bee curtain to cover the comb and protect it against adverse environmental conditions and predators. We studied different aspects of structural and temporal dynamics of the bee curtain in Apis florea . First, in the course of daily observations, we discovered massed flight activity (MFA) of A. florea colonies similar to that previously described for A. dorsata . The MFAs started with the opening of gaps in the curtain and appearance of chains of bees shortly before the massed take off. Second, monitoring the worker movement patterns in the outer layer indicated a constant turnover of bees in the curtain. Finally, introduction of marked 1-day-old workers showed that workers joined the curtain at a very young age. First flight activity appeared around day 20, but the majority of workers started to fly after day 47, which is twice the age at which A. mellifera workers start to forage.Apis florea / open-nesting / bee curtain / massed-flight activity

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Section: Comments On the Function Of Mfasupporting

confidence: 79%

Section: Occurrence and Temporal Dynamics Of Mfamentioning

confidence: 99%

Structural and temporal dynamics of the bee curtain in the open-nesting honey bee species, Apis florea

2016

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“…Heatshedding benefits have been suggested for the giant honeybee Apis dorsata, which builds exposed combs and engages in mass flights involving half the colony, each bee jettisoning 20% of its body mass (Mardan and Kevan, 1989). However, more comprehensive recordings for the same species show that mass flight activity is highest during maximum brood production, and timed so that brood temperature is minimally affected by the temporary absence of the protective curtain of bees (Woyke et al, 2004). Water shedding may be a more important function of mass flights than heat shedding.…”

Section: Colonymentioning

confidence: 99%

Water homeostasis in bees, with the emphasis on sociality

Nicolson

2009

Journal of Experimental Biology

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SummaryAvenues of water gain and loss in bees are examined here at two levels of organisation: the individual and the colony. Compared with the majority of terrestrial insects, bees have a high water turnover. This is due to their nectar diet and, in larger species, substantial metabolic water production during flight, counteracted by high evaporative and excretory losses. Water fluxes at the colony level can also be very high. When incoming nectar is dilute, honeybees need to remove large volumes of water by evaporation. On the other hand, water is not stored in the nest and must be collected for evaporative cooling and for feeding the brood. Water regulation has many similarities at individual and colony levels. In particular, manipulation of nectar or water on the tongue is extensively used by bees to increase evaporation for either food-concentrating or cooling purposes.

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“…At the beginning of the season (October) the temperature is high, but as the season progresses, the temperature steadily drops. During the day the bees can forage, but at night the temperature drops in November to [16][17] o C and the bees become chilled Wilde, 2003b andWoyke et al, 2004). The morning sun warms the bees and foraging starts at about 11 a.m. We noted that A. cerana and A. mellifera bees started foraging several hours earlier.…”

Section: Concave Nestsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…and 1999 (see Tab. 2), Woyke et al 2001aWoyke et al , 2001bWoyke et al , 2003aWoyke et al , 2003bWoyke et al , 2004Woyke et al , 2005aWoyke et al 2005b Previously, the reason why a particular shape of comb or nest occurred was not explained. We provide what we believe is a logical explanalieve is a logical explanation for this phenomenon drawn on the basis of particular shapes of nests found in specific ambient conditions.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The reasons for the different nest shapes of Megapis bees

Woyke

Wilde

Wilde³

2016

Journal of Apicultural Science

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A b s t r a c t Over a 37-year period, we observed 1011 active bee nests and abandoned combs of Apis dorsata and Apis laboriosa in Nepal, India, the Philippines, and Bhutan. This article focuses on the reasons for the different shapes of the nests. We discovered that differing ambient conditions were the reasons for the following three shapes of symmetrical nests: vertical semi-ellipse, semicircle, and the horizontal semi-ellipse. We noted that asymmetrical nests were constructed when there was lack of space to extend the comb equally in both external directions. An asymmetrical nest also appeared when remnants of a previous comb remained on one edge of the nest. Convex nests were constructed to avoid excess sun exposure. Concave nests appeared as a result of low temperatures during the night and part of the day (Nepal). An L-shape nest was constructed when there was lack of space available to extend the nest in a straight direction. The shape of the nests also determines the way the combs fall.

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Periodic mass flights of the giant honey bee,Apis dorsata

Cited by 17 publications

References 6 publications

Structural and temporal dynamics of the bee curtain in the open-nesting honey bee species, Apis florea

Structural and temporal dynamics of the bee curtain in the open-nesting honey bee species, Apis florea

Water homeostasis in bees, with the emphasis on sociality

The reasons for the different nest shapes of Megapis bees

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