There is a high level of
connection between all honey bees in a hive. You may wonder how honey bees
operate so efficiently together, and how they remain so united. The answer to
that question can be explained with pheromones. Pheromones are chemicals which
are secreted to the environment by an individual to be received by other
individuals of the same species. There are a variety of important pheromones
produced by both the workers and the queen that help the colony communicate and
operate daily. Read this week’s blog to learn about some of the pheromones
present in a honey bee hive, and how they alter honey bee behaviour.
The Many Scents of Honey Bees
Beekeepers
should learn about the alarm pheromone which is produced by the workers as part
of a defense strategy. The alarm pheromone is a highly effective signal for
both alerting and recruiting other members of the hive when potential danger is
sensed (Wang and Tan, 2019). Beekeepers are usually well acquainted with the alarm
pheromone, along with its banana smell, as it is released to warn other bees of
danger each time a honey bee stings. This is why beekeepers often get stung in
the same spot several times. Disguising
the pheromone with smoke will interfere with the alarm pheromone signal (Wang
and Tan, 2019).
The
Queen Mandibular Pheromone (QMP) is produced by the queen bee and has a variety
of purposes in the hive. This pheromone inhibits ovary development in workers
so that the queen is the only reproductive female in the colony. This pheromone
stimulates workers to forage (Winston et
al. 1991). The QMP also plays an important role in controlling hive congestion,
as a low potency of the Queen Mandibular Pheromone
may trigger a swarm. Workers distribute QMP by licking so all bees know a queen
is present in the hive (Winston et al. 1991).
Another pheromone produced by the queen is the Queen Retinue Pheromone, which attracts workers to clean, protect and feed the queen (Keeling et al. 2003). The Queen Retinue pheromone also attracts workers to the queen so they can distribute her pheromone messages to other workers throughout the colony. The synergistic, multiglandular, pheromone
blend of at least nine compounds, that induces retinue attraction, is the most complex pheromone blend known for inducing a single behaviour in any organism (Keeling et al. 2003).
The
final pheromone to be discussed in today’s blog is the Nasonov
pheromone which is produced by the workers for orientation purposes. The
pheromone is released by worker bees to orient returning forager bees back to
the colony. The Nasonov pheromone is emitted by bees raising their abdomen,
which contains the Nasanov gland, and fanning their wings vigorously. The
secretion from the Nasonov gland of the worker honey bee comprises of 7
terpenoids, which show significant attraction to foragers only if all seven
components are present together (Pickett et al. 1980; Williams et al.
1981).
Pheromones
are crucial for communication in a bee hive. These secreted chemicals alter
honey bee behaviour, and keep the colony healthy and productive. There are also
other forms of communication in a honey bee colony, such as the distinct vibrations
they make; and communicative dances they do to share information about
resources around the hive. Continue reading our weekly blogs if you are
interested in learning about other forms of communication honey bees use.
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