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Honey bee foraging distance depends on month and forage type

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Abstract

To investigate the distances at which honey bee foragers collect nectar and pollen, we analysed 5,484 decoded waggle dances made to natural forage sites to determine monthly foraging distance for each forage type. Firstly, we found significantly fewer overall dances made for pollen (16.8 %) than for non-pollen, presumably nectar (83.2 %; P < 2.2 × 10−23). When we analysed distance against month and forage type, there was a significant interaction between the two factors, which demonstrates that in some months, one forage type is collected at farther distances, but this would reverse in other months. Overall, these data suggest that distance, as a proxy for forage availability, is not significantly and consistently driven by need for one type of forage over the other.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Ellie Blows and Sarah Hudson for being volunteer dance decoders. MJC is funded by a donation from The Nineveh Charitable Trust, UK. Waitrose Ltd. provided funds for a research MSc (to FCRP) and summer undergraduate research bursaries (to CA, KAF, SKLQ, and ET). Additional research funding was provided by Burt’s Bees, The Body Shop Foundation, and Rowse Honey Ltd.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Apiculture & Social Insects (LASI), School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton, BN1 9QG, UK

    Margaret J. Couvillon, Fiona C. Riddell Pearce, Christopher Accleton, Katherine A. Fensome, Shaun K. L. Quah, Esme L. Taylor & Francis L. W. Ratnieks

  2. School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton, BN1 9QG, UK

    Christopher Accleton

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  1. Margaret J. Couvillon
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  2. Fiona C. Riddell Pearce
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  4. Katherine A. Fensome
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  7. Francis L. W. Ratnieks
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Correspondence to Margaret J. Couvillon.

Additional information

Manuscript editor: David Tarpy

La distance de butinage de l’abeille varie en fonction du mois et du type de substance récoltée

Disponibilité de l’approvisionnement / danse de recrutement / Apis mellifera / nectar / pollen

Die Sammeldistanz bei Honigbienen hängt vom Monat und Art des Sammelns ab

Trachtvorkommen / Schwänzeltanz / Apis mellifera / nektar / pollen

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Couvillon, M.J., Riddell Pearce, F.C., Accleton, C. et al. Honey bee foraging distance depends on month and forage type. Apidologie 46, 61–70 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13592-014-0302-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13592-014-0302-5

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