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The role of the queen mandibular gland pheromone in honeybees (Apis mellifera): honest signal or suppressive agent?

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Abstract

Queen pheromones interfere with worker reproduction in social insects. However, there is still an unresolved question as to whether this pheromone acts as an “honest” signal for workers, giving a reliable indication of the queen’s reproductive value, or as a suppressive agent, inhibiting worker reproduction independent of the queen’s reproductive capacity. In honeybees (Apis mellifera), the queen’s mandibular gland secretion, a mix of fatty acids and some aromatic compounds, is crucial for regulating the reproductive division of labor in the colony inhibiting ovary development in workers. We quantified the mandibular gland secretions of virgin, drone-laying, and naturally mated queens using gas chromatography to test whether the queens’ mating, ovary activation, or the reproductive value for workers correlated with the composition of the secretion. Although the absolute amounts of the “queen substance” 9-oxo-2(E)-decenoic acid (9-ODA) were similar among the three groups, the proportions of 9-ODA decreased with increasing reproductive quality. Furthermore, the ratios of queen to worker compounds were similar in all three treatment groups, irrespective of the reproductive capacity. A multivariate analysis including all six compounds could not separate drone-laying queens from naturally mated ones, both with active ovaries but only the latter ensuring colony survival. We suggest that the mandibular gland pheromones are unlikely to function as reliable indicators of queen reproductive value and rather operate as an agent to suppress worker reproduction. This does not exclude the possibility that other “honest” pheromone signals exist in the honeybee colony, but these would have to arise from other semiochemicals, which could be produced by both the queen and the brood.

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Acknowledgements

We wish to thank John Keyfuss and Nikolaus Koeniger for providing newly emerged queens. We are grateful to Hans-Hinrich Kaatz, Antje Jarosch, and Denise Kleber for assistance in field work. The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft funded this project (RFAM).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut für Biologie, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Hoher Weg 4, 06099, Halle (Saale), Germany

    Katrin Strauss, Holger Scharpenberg & Robin F. A. Moritz

  2. Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa

    Robin M. Crewe & Robin F. A. Moritz

  3. Institut für Umwelttoxikologie, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, 06112, Halle (Saale), Germany

    Felix Glahn & Heidi Foth

Authors
  1. Katrin Strauss
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  2. Holger Scharpenberg
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  3. Robin M. Crewe
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  4. Felix Glahn
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  5. Heidi Foth
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  6. Robin F. A. Moritz
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Correspondence to Robin F. A. Moritz.

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Communicated by J. Heinze

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Strauss, K., Scharpenberg, H., Crewe, R.M. et al. The role of the queen mandibular gland pheromone in honeybees (Apis mellifera): honest signal or suppressive agent?. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 62, 1523–1531 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-008-0581-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-008-0581-9

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