Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
2
What Is the Spirit of the Hive?
One cannot observe a hive of honey bees without getting the feeling
that they are engaged in highly coordinated and cooperative behavior.
As discussed in Chapter 1, both Darwin and Maeterlinck struggled
with how this can occur. It seems that there must be some kind of cen-
tral control, but on careful examination, none can be found. h is led
Maeterlinck to invoke the “spirit of the hive.” But what is it? I will show
here that the coordinated behavior long observed and admired emerges
from a simple logic of self-organization and requires only that worker
honey bees respond to stimuli that they encounter; when they respond,
they change the amount of stimulus at that location and thereby af ect
the local behavior of their nestmates (Figure 2.1).
2.1 Stimulus-Response Basis of Behavior
Stored pollen inhibits foragers from collecting pollen, while young lar-
vae stimulate pollen foraging. Young larvae produce a mixture of chem-
icals, called brood pheromone, that is secreted onto the surface of their
bodies. It is the brood pheromone that stimulates pollen-foraging be-
havior. Pollen foragers returning from a foraging trip seek out combs
with brood and pollen. As the bees walk along the margins of the comb,
they come into direct contact with the pheromone and pollen stores.
Empty cells indicate that pollen has been consumed by nurse bees (bees
that feed and care for the larvae) and fed to developing larvae. Foragers
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