title: Effects of honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) queen insemination volume on worker behavior and physiology.
abstract: Honey bee colonies consist of tens of thousands of workers and a single reproductive queen that produces a pheromone blend which maintains colony organization. Previous studies indicated that the insemination quantity and volume alter queen mandibular pheromone profiles. In our 11-month long field study we show that workers are more attracted to high-volume versus low-volume inseminated queens, however, there were no significant differences between treatments in the number of queen cells built by workers in preparation for supersedure. Workers exposed to low-volume inseminated queens initiated production of queen-like esters in their Dufour's glands, but there were no significant difference in the amount of methyl farnesoate and juvenile hormone in worker hemolymph. Lastly, queen overwintering survival was unexpectedly lower in high-volume inseminated queens. Our results suggest that the queen insemination volume could ultimately affect colony health and productivity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, Center for Chemical Ecology, Huck Institute for Life Sciences, Chemical Ecology Laboratory 121-A, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA. elastro@psu.edu
authors.forename: Elina L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Niño
authors.forename: Osnat
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Malka
authors.forename: Abraham
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hefetz
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Teal
authors.forename: Jerry
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hayes
authors.forename: Christina M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Grozinger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001516:Bees / Q000502:physiology*; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D008297:Male; D010675:Pheromones / Q000378:metabolism; D012919:Social Behavior
chemical_list: D010675:Pheromones