Bee Pheromone Production: The Chemical Language of Bees

Bees, particularly honey bees, are fascinating creatures known for their complex social structures and behaviors. One of the most intriguing aspects of bee behavior is their use of pheromones. These chemical signals play a pivotal role in the hive’s communication, coordination, and survival. In this article, we delve deep into the world of bee pheromone production, understanding its significance, and exploring the various types of pheromones bees produce.

Key Takeaways:

Pheromones are chemical signals used by bees for communication.
Different types of pheromones serve distinct purposes within the hive.
Bee pheromone production is crucial for hive coordination and survival.

Introduction to Bee Pheromones
Types of Bee Pheromones
Pheromone Production Glands
The Role of Pheromones in Hive Activities
Influence of Brood Pheromone on Honey Bee Colony Establishment and Queen Replacement
The Intricacies of Honey Bee Pheromones
Thought-Provoking Insights

Bee Pheromone Production: Introduction to Bee Pheromones

Bees utilize a range of pheromones to communicate with each other. These chemical compounds are secreted by specific glands and are detected by other bees, leading to a particular behavior or response. Pheromones act as a chemical language, allowing bees to convey essential information without the need for vocal or visual cues.

Types of Bee Pheromones

Alarm Pheromones

When a bee feels threatened or is injured, it releases alarm pheromones. These chemicals alert other bees of potential danger, prompting them to become more aggressive and defensive. The primary compound in this pheromone is isopentyl acetate, which has a distinct banana-like odor.

Queen Mandibular Pheromones (QMP)

The queen bee produces a unique set of pheromones known as Queen Mandibular Pheromones (QMP). These pheromones serve multiple purposes:

Indicating the presence of a healthy queen in the hive.
Suppressing the development of ovaries in worker bees.
Attracting drones during mating flights.

Brood Pheromones

Larvae and pupae produce brood pheromones. These pheromones communicate the brood’s developmental status and needs to the worker bees. They play a crucial role in ensuring that the brood is adequately fed and cared for.

Pheromone Production Glands

Bees possess several glands responsible for producing different pheromones. Some of the primary glands include:

Mandibular Glands

Found in both queens and workers, these glands produce pheromones used for various purposes. In queens, they produce QMP, while in workers, they produce alarm pheromones.

Dufour’s Gland

Located in the abdomen, this gland produces pheromones that signal the presence of a laying worker bee in the absence of a queen.

Tarsal Glands

Found on the bee’s feet, these glands produce pheromones that mark flowers, indicating to other bees that the flower has already been visited.

Bee Pheromone Production: The Role of Pheromones in Hive Activities

Pheromones are integral to the smooth functioning of a bee hive. They regulate numerous activities, including:

Mating: Drones are attracted to the queen’s pheromones during mating flights.
Foraging: Forager bees use pheromones to communicate the location and quality of food sources.
Defense: Alarm pheromones rally bees to defend the hive against threats.

An Overview of Honey Bee Glands & Pheromones

Influence of Brood Pheromone on Honey Bee Colony Establishment and Queen Replacement

Abstract:

Recent observations suggest a decline in honey bee queen longevity, leading to premature supersedure and queen failure. This is especially evident when beekeepers create new colonies from packages, where many queens are rejected or replaced shortly after installation. The mechanisms that trigger supersedure in honey bees remain largely unknown, but there’s a strong association with open brood, hinting at the involvement of brood ester pheromone (BEP). In an experiment, new packages were installed into hive equipment with no treatment (Control), exposure to BEP during transport and for the first 10 days post-installation (BEP), or one frame of open brood (Brood). The results showed varying growth patterns among the groups. Control colonies grew the least, Brood colonies started strong but eventually leveled off, while BEP colonies began slow but maintained positive growth throughout the study. The study also found significant differences in queen acceptance rates among the treatments.

Introduction:

The central role of honey bee queens in colony function makes their reduced longevity a concern for beekeepers. Historically, queens had a median lifespan of over 25 months, but recent trends show many queens failing to live past a year. This has been identified as a major concern for colony mortality in the US. Factors like extreme temperature exposure during transport, disease, and pesticide exposure have been linked to these issues. The mechanisms governing supersedure, or queen replacement in the presence of a laying queen, are not well-understood. However, brood pheromones, especially BEP, have been identified to influence various aspects of colony social physiology.

Materials and Methods:

The study used brood ester pheromone formulated as per previous research. 45 standard 3-pound packaged bees with newly mated queens were purchased. The packages were treated with BEP or installed into hives with open brood, and their growth and queen acceptance rates were monitored over 12 weeks.

Results:

Nearly half of the colonies raised queen cells within the first 12 weeks. The likelihood of a colony raising queens was significantly influenced by the treatment. Brood colonies had a higher likelihood of accepting the original queen compared to BEP and Control colonies. The number of constructed queen cells did not seem to indicate the colony’s eagerness to replace its queen. The most associated variable with queen outcome over the last 4 weeks was the ratio of open brood to adult bee population.

Bee Pheromone Production: The Intricacies of Honey Bee Pheromones

Honey bee pheromones are an essential aspect of their social structure, playing a pivotal role in communication within the colony. These chemical substances, secreted by an animal’s exocrine glands, elicit behavioral or physiological responses in other members of the same species. In the context of honey bees, pheromonal messages are typically directed at members of the same colony, but there are exceptions where the target can be from another colony.

The honey bee society is a composite organization comprising three adult castes: the queen, worker, and male (drone), as well as the non-self-sufficient brood. This intricate structure necessitates a sophisticated communication system among colony members, and pheromones are the linchpin in this mechanism. They are involved in virtually every facet of honey bee colony life, from development and reproduction to foraging, defense, and orientation.

There are two primary types of pheromones in honey bees: primer pheromones and releaser pheromones. Primer pheromones act on a physiological level, inducing long-term responses in the receiver, leading to both developmental and behavioral changes. Releaser pheromones, on the other hand, have a more transient effect, influencing the receiver only at the behavioral level.

The queen bee, as the primary regulator of colony functions, employs pheromones produced by various glands. These pheromones, collectively known as the “queen signal,” primarily function as primer pheromones. They induce several physiological and behavioral modifications in the worker bees, ensuring the maintenance of colony homeostasis, establishment of social hierarchy, and preservation of the queen’s reproductive dominance.

The queen mandibular pheromone (QMP) is the most extensively studied chemical signal in the honey bee society. It plays multiple roles, from attracting workers to form the retinue group to acting as a sexual pheromone for drone attraction during mating flights. Furthermore, QMP suppresses both queen supersedure (replacement of the queen) and swarming.

In addition to the queen’s pheromones, the brood also emits pheromones that play a role in suppressing worker ovary development. This intricate dance of chemical signals ensures the smooth functioning of the honey bee society, from the individual bee to the entire colony.

Thought-Provoking Insights:

The Role of Pheromones in Social Insects: The honey bee’s reliance on pheromones for communication is a testament to the importance of chemical signals in the animal kingdom. How do other social insects utilize pheromones, and how do their communication systems compare to that of honey bees?
The Queen’s Dominance: The queen bee’s ability to regulate the entire colony through pheromones is fascinating. What would happen in the absence of these pheromones, and how would the colony adapt?
Brood’s Influence on Worker Bees: It’s intriguing that not just the queen, but also the brood, can influence worker bee behavior through pheromones. How does this dynamic play out in real-world scenarios, especially when the colony faces threats or changes in its environment?