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-Bee colonies were prevented from collecting pollen, and the effect on brood rearing and on the N, P, K, Ca, Na and Mg contents of pupae was studied. Under these conditions brood rearing was reduced and fully stopped, which lead to a decrease in population size, whereas control colonies with access to pollen developed normally. Only a few significant differences were found in chemical analyses in pupae and worker bees of colonies with and without access to pollen. We conclude that the major feature of honey bee response to pollen shortage is a termination of brood rearing, and that those pupae still reared contain similar quantities of nitrogen and of most minerals as pupae reared during good foraging conditions. © Inra/DIB/AGIB/Elsevier, Paris Apis mellifera / brood rearing / pollen / nitrogen / minerals

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Colonies of Trinervitermes geminatus (Wasman) build a network of forked foraging trails. Homing workers choose, with few exceptions, those tracks at the forks of the pheromone trail network that lead direct to the nest. Assessments show that these workers are also able to distinguish between the homeward and outward direction along an unbranched trail. Experiments involving the alteration of the local natural magnetic field by means of a weak permanent magnet provide evidence that the termites recognise the home direction by means of magnetoreception.

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