Advisor: H. Kern Reeve Start Date:
Fall 2004
I am a first-year graduate student working with the advice of Dr. Thomas Seeley and the contributions of Dr. Kern Reeve and Dr. Ron Hoy. I am interested in insect foraging biology in general, and the mechanisms of communication observed across all species of tropical stingless bees, in particular.
Eusocial insects, such as ants and bees, have evolved a broad range of behaviors for communication of resource location, quality, and abundance, which increase the inclusive fitness of colony members. For instance, foragers of the honey bee Apis mellifera can indicate the location of a food source to nestmates by performing waggle dances inside the nest. A similarly interesting communication is exhibited in the stingless bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Meliponinae), a monophyletic group with 36 genera and hundreds of species, which has evolved unique sets of mechanisms that communicate resource location in the wild. In particular, foragers of each species are thought to communicate the location of resources via mechanisms that include piloting, scent-trails, scent beacons, dances, sounds, and vibrations. However, these mechanisms have not been yet resolved, due to contradictory results as to what information is conveyed with each mechanism, and how multi-modal communication in stingless bees has evolved. Using the little studied Melipona beechii, I intend to pursue studies involving the foraging biology of stingless bees: I will attempt to unveil the key mechanisms of communication of resource sites in their natural environment, and help resolve the controversy of whether bees can communicate the location of a food source in three dimensions (distance, direction, and height).
Melipona beechii workers tending the colony’s honey pots. Photo courtesy of Tom Wenseleers
