Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Sucrose acceptance, discrimination and proboscis responses of honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) in the field and the laboratory

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Comparative Physiology A Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Laboratory studies in honey bees have shown positive correlations between sucrose responsiveness, division of labour and learning. We tested the relationships between sucrose acceptance and discrimination in the field and responsiveness in the laboratory. Based on acceptance in the field three groups of bees were differentiated: (1) bees that accept sucrose concentrations >10%, (2) bees that accept some but not all of the sucrose concentrations <10% and water, and (3) bees that accept water and all offered sucrose concentrations. Sucrose acceptance can be described in a model in which sucrose- and water-dependent responses interact additively. Responsiveness to sucrose was tested in the same bees in the laboratory by measuring the proboscis extension response (PER). The experiments demonstrated that PER responsiveness is lower than acceptance in the field and that it is not possible to infer from the PER measurements in the laboratory those concentrations the respective bees accepted in the field. Discrimination between sucrose concentrations was tested in three groups of free-flying bees collecting low, intermediate or high concentrations of sucrose. The experiments demonstrated that bees can discriminate between concentrations differences down to 0.2 relative log units. There exist only partial correlations between discrimination, acceptance and PER responsiveness.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8

Similar content being viewed by others

Abbreviations

GAS:

Gustatory acceptance score

GRS:

Gustatory response score

PER:

Proboscis extension response

References

  • Barker PDR, Lehner Y (1974) Acceptance and sustenance value of naturally occurring sugars fed to newly emerged adult workers of honey bees (Apis mellifera L.). J Exp Zool 187:277–285

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Beutler R (1935) Neue Untersuchungen über den Zuckergehalt des Blütennektars. Leipzig Bienenztg 271–273

  • Butler CG (1945) The influence of various physical and biological factors of the environment on honeybee activity. An examination of the relationship between activity and nectar concentration and abundance. Exp Biol 21:5–12

    Google Scholar 

  • Corbet SA (2003) Nectar sugar content: estimating standing crop and secretion rate in the field. Apidologie 34:1–10

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dethier VG, Hanson FE (1968) Electrophysiological responses of the chemoreceptors of the blowfly to sodium salts of fatty acids. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 60:1296–1303

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Erber J, Kierzek S, Sander E, Grandy K (1998a) Tactile learning in the honeybee. J Comp Physiol A 183:737–744

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Erber J, Scheiner R, Page R (1998b) Sucrose-perception and learning behaviour in honey bees. Eur J Neurosci 10(Suppl 10):260

    Google Scholar 

  • Esch H (1962) Über die Auswirkung der Futterplatzqualität auf die Schallerzeugung im Werbetanz der Honigbiene. Verh Dtsch Zool Ges 26:302–309

    Google Scholar 

  • Evans DR, Mellon D Jr (1962) Electrophysiological studies of a water receptor associated with the taste sensilla of the Blowfly. J Gen Physiol 45:487–500

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Farina WM, Grüter C, Diaz PC (2005) Social learning of floral odours inside the honeybee hive. Proc R Soc Lond B 272:1923–1928

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Farina WM, Grüter C, Acosta L, Mc Cabe S (2007) Honeybees learn floral odors while receiving nectar from foragers within the hive. Naturwissenschaften 94:55–60

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Haupt SS (2004) Antennal sucrose perception in the honey bee (Apis mellifera L.): behaviour and electrophysiology. J Comp Physiol A 190:735–745

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kunze G (1933) Einige Versuche über den Antennengeschmackssinn der Honigbiene. Zool Jahrb Abt Allg Zool und Physiol 52:465–512

    Google Scholar 

  • Kuwabara M (1957) Bildung des bedingten Reflexes vom Pavlov Typus bei der Honigbiene (Apis mellifica). J Fac Sci Hokkaido Univ Zool 13:458–464

    Google Scholar 

  • Lacher V (1964) Elektrophysiologische Untersuchungen an einzelnen Rezeptoren für Geruch, Kohlendioxyd, Luftfeuchtigkeit und Temperatur auf den Antennen der Arbeitsbiene und der Drohne (Apis mellifica L.). J Comp Physiol A 48:587–623

    Google Scholar 

  • Marshall J (1935) On the sensitivity of the chemoreceptors on the antenna and fore tarsus of the honey bee, Apis mellifica L. J Exp Biol 12:17–26

    Google Scholar 

  • Nicolson SW, Human H (2008) Bees get a head start on honey production. Biol Lett 4:299–301

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Page RE, Erber J (2002) Levels of behavioral organization and the evolution of division of labor. Naturwissenschaften 89:91–106

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Page RE, Erber J, Fondrk MK (1998) The effect of genotype on response thresholds to sucrose and foraging behavior of honey bees (Apis mellifera L.). J Comp Physiol A 182:489–500

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Page RE, Scheiner R, Erber J, Amdam GV (2006) The development and evolution of division of labor and foraging specialization in a social insect (Apis mellifera L.). Curr Top Dev Biol 74:253–286

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pankiw T, Page RE (1999) The effect of genotype, age, sex, and caste on response thresholds to sucrose and foraging behavior of honey bees (Apis mellifera L.). J Comp Physiol A 185:207–213

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pankiw T, Page RE (2000) Response thresholds to sucrose predicts foraging division of labor in honeybees. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 47:265–267

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pankiw T, Page RE (2001) Brood pheromone modulates honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) sucrose response thresholds. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 49:206–213

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pankiw T, Waddington KD, Page RE (2001) Modulation of sucrose response thresholds in honey bees (Apis mellifera L.): influence of genotype, feeding, and foraging experience. J Comp Physiol A 187:293–301

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pankiw T, Nelson M, Page RE, Fondrk MK (2004) The communal crop: modulation of sucrose response thresholds of pre foraging honey bees with incoming nectar quality. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 55:286–292

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raveret Richter M, Waddington KD (1993) Past foraging experience influences honey bee dance behaviour. Anim Behav 46:123–128

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rees CJC (1970) The primary process of reception in the type 3 (‘water’) receptor cell of the fly, Phormia terranovae. Proc R Soc Lond B 174:469–490

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Robertson HM, Wanner KW (2006) The chemoreceptor superfamily in the honey bee, Apis mellifera: expansion of the odorant, but not gustatory, receptor family. Genome Res 16:1395–1403

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rodrigues V, Siddiqi O (1981) A gustatory mutant of Drosophila defective in pyranose receptors. Mol Gen Genet 181:406–408

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Scheiner R (2004) Responsiveness to sucrose and habituation of the proboscis extension response in honey bees. J Comp Physiol A 190:727–733

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Scheiner R, Erber J, Page RE (1999) Tactile learning and the individual evaluation of the reward in honey bees (Apis mellifera L.). J Comp Physiol A 185:1–10

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Scheiner R, Page RE, Erber J (2001a) Responsiveness to sucrose affects tactile and olfactory learning in preforaging honey bees of two genetic strains. Behav Brain Res 120:67–73

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Scheiner R, Page RE, Erber J (2001b) The effects of genotype, foraging role, and sucrose responsiveness on the tactile learning performance of honey bees (Apis mellifera L.). Neurobiol Learn Mem 76:138–150

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Scheiner R, Barnert M, Erber J (2003) Variation in water and sucrose responsiveness during the foraging season affects proboscis extension learning in honey bees. Apidologie 34:67–72

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scheiner R, Page RE, Erber J (2004) Sucrose responsiveness and behavioral plasticity in honey bees (Apis mellifera). Apidologie 35:133–142

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scheiner R, Kuritz-Kaiser A, Menzel R, Erber J (2005) Sensory responsiveness and the effects of equal subjective rewards on tactile learning and memory of honeybees. Learn Mem 12:626–635

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Scheiner R, Baumann A, Blenau W (2006) Aminergic control and modulation of honeybee behaviour. Curr Neuropharmacol 4:259–276

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Seeley TD (1995) The wisdom of the hive. Harvard University Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Seeley TD, Mikheyev AS, Pagano GJ (2000) Dancing bees tune both duration and rate of waggle-run production in relation to nectar-source profitability. J Comp Physiol A 186:813–819

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Slone J, Daniels J, Amrein H (2007) Sugar receptors in Drosophila. Curr Biol 17:1809–1816

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • von Frisch K (1927) Versuche über den Geschmackssinn der Bienen. Naturwissenschaften 15:321–327

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • von Frisch K (1934) Über den Geschmackssinn der Biene. J Comp Physiol A 21:1–156

    Google Scholar 

  • von Frisch K (1965) Tanzsprache und Orientierung der Bienen. Springer, Berlin

    Google Scholar 

  • Waddington KD (1982) Honey bee foraging profitability and round dance correlates. J Comp Physiol A 148:297–301

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitehead AT (1978) Electrophysiological response of honey bee labial palp contact chemoreceptors to sugars and electrolytes. Physiol Entomol 3:241–248

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Whitehead AT, Larsen JR (1976a) Electrophysiological responses of galeal contact chemoreceptors of Apis mellifera to selected sugars and electrolytes. J Insect Physiol 22:1609–1616

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Whitehead AT, Larsen JR (1976b) Ultrastructure of taste receptors of Apis mellifera L. Am Zool 16:214

    Google Scholar 

  • Wieczorek H (1980) Sugar reception by an insect water receptor. J Comp Physiol A 138:167–172

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wieczorek H, Köppl R (1978) Effect of sugars on the labellar water receptor of the fly. J Comp Physiol A 126:131–136

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wieczorek H, Shimada I, Hopperdietzel C (1988) Treatment with pronase uncouples water and sugar reception in the labellar water receptor of the blowfly. J Comp Physiol A 163:413–419

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yokohari F (1983) The coelocapitular sensillum, an antennal hygro- and thermoreceptive sensillum of the honey bee, Apis mellifera L. Cell Tissue Res 233:355–365

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yokohari F, Tominaga Y, Tateda H (1982) Antennal hygroreceptors of the honey bee, Apis mellifera L. Cell Tissue Res 226:63–73

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The work was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft by funding of the Graduate College “Functional Insect Science”. We wish to thank Benedikt Polaczek for his advice and support in beekeeping. The experiments comply with the current German guidelines for the proper treatment of animals.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut für Ökologie, Technische Universität Berlin, Franklinstraße 28/29, 10587, Berlin, Germany

    Samir Mujagic & Joachim Erber

Authors
  1. Samir Mujagic
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Joachim Erber
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Samir Mujagic.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Mujagic, S., Erber, J. Sucrose acceptance, discrimination and proboscis responses of honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) in the field and the laboratory. J Comp Physiol A 195, 325–339 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-008-0409-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-008-0409-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation