The Shaking Signal of the Honey Bee Informs Workers to Prepare for Greater Activity

Abstract

I.L, S. 1998: The shaking signal of thc honc-y bee informs workers to prepare for geater activity. Ethology 104, 10-26. AbstractOne of the most conspicuous activities o f worker bees inside a hive is the shaking of other wc~rliers. This shaking has long been suspected to be a communication behavior, but its information content and function have until recently remained mysterious. Prior studies of thc colony-level patterns of the production o f ihc shaking signal supgest strongly that this signal semes to arouse workers to greater activity, such as at times of good foraging. Data from our obsenrauons of mdividual bees holster the hypothesis that the shaking signal informs workers to prepare for a higher level of activity. We followed foragers in a colony whose only source i l f 'nectar' was a sugar-water feeder and discovered that when the feeder was left empty for 1-3 d and then refilled, the first bees to find the fond initially produced only shaking signals upon return to the hivc. It was not until they had completed several trips to the feeder that they began to produce waggle dances. Evidently, the shaking signal and the waggle dance function together to stimulate a colony's foragers to activity.

Honey bee stop-signal production: temporal distribution and effect of feeder crowding

“…Bumble bees, Bombus impatiens, returning from a rich food source can move excitedly inside the nest, contacting nestmates who then have an increased probability of exiting the nest to forage (Renner and Nieh, 2008). In honey bees, the vibratory "shaking signal" increases the activity of recipients and alters their responsiveness to different stimuli (Schneider et al, 1986;Seeley et al, 1998).…”

The effects of the shook swarm technique on honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) colony productivity and honey quality

“…It must be noted that a nurse worker bee can nurse four larvae (Winston, 1987;Sammataro andAvitabile, 1998), andPratt (2004) has pointed out that productivity in the colony is the result of the common efforts and abilities of all individuals. It is normal for there to be significant age related variance in the colony population, and this is a physiological feature of the honey bee (Winston, 1987;Seeley, 1997Seeley, , 1998. Because the whole system is related to reproduction and development, after the shaking process the colony enters a stagnation phase due to the decline in the amount of pollen and nectar resources and a decrease in temperature Pratt, 2004).…”

The dance legacy of Karl von Frisch

“…For example, a worker bee may grab the legs of other bees and vibrate her own body for a few seconds. The purpose of this shaking signal or even the context under which it occurs is currently unclear (Seeley et al, 1998;Biesmeijer, 2003a), even though the behavior has been extensively investigated (Allen, 1959;von Frisch, 1967;Schneider, 1986;Nieh, 1998;Seeley et al, 1998;Lewis et al, 2002). It is thought to function as a modulatory Here the dancer performs a waggle run (1) followed by a turn to one side (2) to circle back (return phase) to the starting point of the waggle run (3).…”

“…Reprinted with permission (Gardner et al, 2008) communication signal (Hölldobler and Wilson, 1990;Biesmeijer, 2003a) to influence the arousal of nestmate bees. For example, a successful forager, upon return to the hive, may shake her nestmates to spur her into greater activity (Allen, 1959;Schneider, 1986;Nieh, 1998;Seeley et al, 1998). However, shaking is also performed by unsuccessful foragers (Biesmeijer, 2003a).…”