Effect of the queen on worker reproduction and new queen production in the bumble bee Bombus terrestris

Lopez-Vaamonde, Carlos, Brown, Ruth M., Lucas, Eric R., Pereboom, Jeffrey J. M., Jordan, William C. and Bourke, Andrew F. G. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5891-8816 (2007) Effect of the queen on worker reproduction and new queen production in the bumble bee Bombus terrestris. Apidologie, 38 (2). pp. 171-180. ISSN 1297-9678

Full text not available from this repository. (Request a copy)

Abstract

We tested the hypotheses that a non-volatile pheromone inhibiting worker egg-laying and queen development produced by Bombus terrestris queens has effects transferable (a) from workers to other workers or larvae, or (b) on wax. We subdivided small, young colonies with a single mesh screen (Experiment 1) and larger, older colonies with a double mesh screen (Experiment 2). One treatment (in both experiments) involved the transfer of workers, and one treatment (in Experiment 2 only) involved the transfer of wax, from the queenright to the queenless compartments. Queenlessness induced significantly earlier onset of worker aggression (followed by egg-laying) in all treatments in both experiments, and significantly earlier queen production in all treatments in Experiment 2 (small colony sizes probably hindered queen production in Experiment 1). These findings suggested that the effects of B. terrestris queen pheromone are not transferable via workers or wax.

Item Type: Article
Faculty \ School: Faculty of Science > School of Biological Sciences
UEA Research Groups: Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Organisms and the Environment
Faculty of Science > Research Centres > Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Conservation
Depositing User: EPrints Services
Date Deposited: 01 Oct 2010 13:38
Last Modified: 24 Sep 2024 09:38
URI: https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/1397
DOI: 10.1051/apido:2006070

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item