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Associative olfactory learning of the red dwarf honey bee Apis florea

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Abstract

Apis florea has a wide distribution in southeast Asia, where it is the dominant honey bee species. It is an excellent colonizer, suggesting advanced behavioral plasticity. Using the proboscis extension response (PER) conditioning method, we investigated A. florea associative olfactory learning ability and compared it to the learning performances of Apis mellifera. A. florea workers reacted to pure odorant (conditioned stimulus) only when it was delivered in paired associations with sucrose rewards (unconditioned stimulus), and discriminated between a rewarded and unrewarded odor. Moreover, A. florea levels of acquisition in olfactory associative learning were higher in our study than those of A. mellifera, and they showed better retention of learning after 24 h than A. mellifera. Our results show that A. florea can be studied using PER procedures, enlarging the scope for future comparative studies of associative olfactory learning ability in bees.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dorit Avni, Nadav Ezra, and Yael Garbian for their helpful advice and assistance and Tatty Klass for technical assistance. Special thanks to Haim Kalev for his invaluable assistance. This research was supported by grant no. 824-0116-10 of the Chief Scientist Office, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Israel.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. B. Triwaks Bee Research Center, Department of Entomology, Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 76100, Rehovot, Israel

    Roy Kaspi & Sharoni Shafir

  2. The Israel Cohen Institute for Biological Control, Plant Production and Marketing Board, Citrus Division, P.O. Box 235, Yahud-Monoson, 56000, Israel

    Roy Kaspi

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  1. Roy Kaspi
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  2. Sharoni Shafir
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Correspondence to Sharoni Shafir.

Additional information

Manuscript editor: Monique Gauthier

Apprentissage olfactif associatif de l'abeille naine, Apis florea

Apis mellifera / Hymenoptera / réponse d'extension du proboscis / conditionnement

Assoziatives olfaktorisches Lernen bei der Zwerghonigbiene Apis florea

Apis mellifera / Hymenoptera / Rüsselreflex / Konditionierung

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Kaspi, R., Shafir, S. Associative olfactory learning of the red dwarf honey bee Apis florea . Apidologie 44, 100–109 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13592-012-0160-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13592-012-0160-y

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