Size variation and foraging rate in bumblebees ( Bombus terrestris )

Spaethe, Johannes; Weidenmüller, Anja

doi:10.1007/s00040-002-8293-z

Cited by 213 publications

(210 citation statements)

References 27 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

192

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Red Clover) both between bumblebee species (e.g. Inouye 1980) and even within a colony (tongue length correlating with worker body size: Harder 1985; size-specific foraging performance: Spaethe and Weidenmüller 2002). In our dataset proboscis length of B. lapidarius males and B. terrestris workers were very similar.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 57%

The pollination potential of free-foraging bumblebee (Bombus spp.) males (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

Wolf

Moritz

2014

Apidologie

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

-Bumblebee workers are efficient pollinators. However, despite their flower visits and less intense grooming the role of males as pollen vectors is largely unexplored. We compared the quantity and diversity of pollen on the bodies (pollination-active pollen) of free-foraging workers and males of two bumblebee species (Bombus lapidarius and Bombus terrestris) to assess their pollination potential. In both species, males exhibit worker-like flower constancy, but differ significantly from workers in the predominantly collected pollen types. Mean pollen loads of approximately 10,000 grains/individual suggest that males can contribute to the colony pollination service. Bumblebee males add to the diversity of pollinators, associated to increased crop pollination and facilitate pollen flow in specific ways, worthwhile further investigation.bumblebee males / pollen loads / colony pollination service / flower constancy

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 57%

The pollination potential of free-foraging bumblebee (Bombus spp.) males (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

Wolf

Moritz

2014

Apidologie

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…To study the effects of continuous diversity on colony fitness and efficiency for particular tasks, researchers often focused on the function of larger and smaller workers in the colonies without manipulating worker diversity (e.g. Goulson et al 2002;Spaethe and Weidenmüller 2002;Peat et al 2005;Couvillon and Dornhaus 2010;Westling et al 2014). In order to test whether colony fitness is affected by colony-level worker size diversity, including the colony-level emerging properties of worker size diversity and not only the functions of large and small workers, we manipulated colonies to reduce worker size diversity in test colonies while natural diversity was retained in control colonies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decreasing worker size diversity does not affect colony performance during laboratory challenges in the ant Temnothorax nylanderi

Colin

Doums

Péronnet

et al. 2017

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Authors' contributions TC collected colonies, reared them, performed the experiments and statistical analyses, and wrote the manuscript. CD designed the study, contributed to statistical analysis and wrote the manuscript. RP collected colonies, and assisted in rearing and experiments. MM designed the study, wrote the manuscript, and supervised the project. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Within-colony phenotypic diversity can play an essential role in some eusocial insect taxa by increasing the performance of division of labor, thereby increasing colony fitness. Empirical studies of the effect of phenotypic diversity on colony fitness mostly focused on species with discrete castes (workers, soldiers) or with continuously and highly morphologically variable workers, which is not the most common case. Indeed, most species exhibit continuous but limited worker morphological variation. It is still unclear whether this variation impacts colony fitness. To test this, we reduced the worker size diversity in 25 colonies of the ant Temnothorax nylanderi and compared their performances to 25 control colonies. We reared these colonies in the laboratory and measured the effect of treatment (reduced diversity or control) and colony size (number of workers) on colony performance at six challenges, as well as on worker mortality and brood production. The reduction of worker size diversity did not affect colony performance nor mortality and brood production. As expected, colony performance and brood production increased with colony size. These results suggest that worker size diversity may not be under positive selection in this species, but rather the product of a lack of developmental canalization. We propose that social life could decrease the selective pressures maintaining developmental canalization, subsequently leading to higher size diversity without necessarily increasing colony performance. 4 Significance statementIn social insects, nestmate size diversity is commonly thought to improve division of labour and colony performance. This has been clearly demonstrated in species with high size diversity, either discrete or continuous, but this is unclear in most of the social insects that exhibit low size diversity. We experimentally decreased worker size diversity in the ant Temnothorax nylanderi, a species with low worker size diversity. Reducing worker size diversity had no effect on colony performance, worker mortality or brood production. Our findings support the hypothesis that low size diversity is merely the product of developmental noise and is not necessarily adaptive. We propose that social life could relax the selective pressures maintaining developmental and social canalizations, subsequently leading to size diversity.5

show abstract

“…A further colony was excluded from this analysis as no bees were lost during the entire experiment. Body mass in B. terrestris is strongly correlated with body size (Goulson et al, 2002;Spaethe & Weidenm¨uller, 2002). For consistency across lost and returning bees, we used the departure mass of each bee on its first foraging bout.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of aposematic coloration on predation risk in bumblebees? A comparison between differently coloured populations, with consideration of the ultraviolet

Stelzer

Raine

Schmitt³

et al. 2010

Journal of Zoology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

It has been proposed that sympatric bumblebee species form mimicry rings to profit from learnt avoidance behaviour by predators. This hypothesis can be tested by comparing the predation rates of local bumblebees with those of imported nonnative bumblebees, whose coat colour is different from that of local bees, so that their coloration is unfamiliar to local predators. To test whether populations of non-native bumblebees suffer higher worker loss rates during foraging, we conducted transplant experiments in the UK, Germany and Sardinia. The loss rates of foraging workers of four Bombus terrestris populations (Bombus terrestris canariensis, Bombus terrestris terrestris, Bombus terrestris sassaricus and Bombus terrestris dalmatinus) were compared, evaluating data from 989 foragers, whose flight times were monitored precisely (over 8258 h of foraging). While all of these workers display a bright UV-reflecting abdominal tip, the colours in other body parts differ strongly to the eyes of avian predators. The hypothesis that foragers from the non-native bumblebee populations, which differ in coloration from the local native population, would suffer higher predation risk was not upheld. In contrast, in one location (Sardinia) the native population had the highest loss rate. The consistent population rank order we found in terms of forager losses indicates that such losses are more prominently affected by factors other than the familiarity of local predators with aposematic colour patterns.

show abstract

Size variation and foraging rate in bumblebees ( Bombus terrestris )

Cited by 213 publications

References 27 publications

The pollination potential of free-foraging bumblebee (Bombus spp.) males (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

The pollination potential of free-foraging bumblebee (Bombus spp.) males (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

Decreasing worker size diversity does not affect colony performance during laboratory challenges in the ant Temnothorax nylanderi

Effects of aposematic coloration on predation risk in bumblebees? A comparison between differently coloured populations, with consideration of the ultraviolet

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About