Drone Brood in Honey Bee Colonies

Allen, Delia M.

doi:10.1093/jee/51.1.46

Cited by 25 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In temperate regions, virgin queens are produced most intensively during the swarming season, hence in the spring and early summer (Winston, 1987, page 183). As expected, drone production also peaks in the spring, a few weeks before the emergence of virgin queens (Allen, 1958(Allen, , 1963(Allen, , 1965Lee & Winston, 1987;Page, 1981). In tropical regions, the peak of drone production also coincides with the swarming season (Schneider & McNally, 1994).…”

supporting

confidence: 76%

Adaptive tuning of an extended phenotype: honeybees seasonally shift their honey storage to optimize male production

2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

supporting

confidence: 76%

Adaptive tuning of an extended phenotype: honeybees seasonally shift their honey storage to optimize male production

2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…Although this peak in drone production also coincides with the peak in worker production, it is during this time of year that colonies produce the highest proportion of drone brood (Free and Williams, 1975). This peak occurs just prior to the population's main swarming season, when virgin queens are most abundant (Allen, 1958;Allen, 1965b;Lee and Winston, 1987;Page, 1981). As a result, colonies have the greatest number of drones during the time of year when drones are most likely to successfully mate.…”

Section: Seasonmentioning

confidence: 85%

Honeybee colony drone production and maintenance in accordance with environmental factors: an interplay of queen and worker decisions

Boes

2009

Insect. Soc.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Social insect colonies display a remarkable ability to adjust investment in reproduction (i.e., production of sexuals) in accordance with environmental conditions such as season and food availability. How this feat is accomplished by the colony's queen(s) and workers remains a puzzle. Here, I review what we have learned about this subject in the European honeybee (Apis mellifera), specifically with regard to a colony's production of males (drones). I identify five environmental conditions that influence colony-level patterns of drone production and then define five stages of drone rearing that are accomplished by the queen and workers. Using this framework, I detail our current understanding of how the queen or workers adjust their actions at each stage of drone rearing in response to each of the environmental conditions. Future investigations of this topic in honeybees and other social insect societies will lead to a better understanding of how colonies manage to flexibly and efficiently allocate their resources under changing environmental conditions.

show abstract

“…This is not so astonishing as drones are not of direct commercial interest and are reared and found in the honeybee colonies only during restricted periods of time -in temperate regions only during part of the summer season (Allen, 1958;Free and Williams 1975;Morse et al, 1967; see also Seeley, 1985;Winston, 1987). When colonies prepare for the winter period they expel drones, often as early as July or August in temperate regions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differences in drone and worker physiology in honeybees (Apis mellifera)

2005

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

-Drones and workers have completely different roles in a honeybee colony. This is reflected in many physiological, morphological and behavioural differences. Our overview mainly focuses on aspects of diet and metabolism in larvae and adults, and on the physiology of digestion. As larvae, drones have different protein and sugar requirements than workers, and in each life stage drones and workers differ in body composition (percentages of glycogen, lipids and proteins). Like queens, drones as adults are nourished by worker-prepared food, and compared to workers their ability to digest is reduced. Mature drones fly usually only under optimal weather conditions. Their flight metabolism and resting metabolism also differ from those of workers. We discuss these differences as adaptations to the different functions of the two sexes within the colony as a superorganism.nutrition / digestion / enzymes / energy metabolism / body reserves

show abstract

Drone Brood in Honey Bee Colonies

Cited by 25 publications

References 0 publications

Adaptive tuning of an extended phenotype: honeybees seasonally shift their honey storage to optimize male production

Adaptive tuning of an extended phenotype: honeybees seasonally shift their honey storage to optimize male production

Honeybee colony drone production and maintenance in accordance with environmental factors: an interplay of queen and worker decisions

Differences in drone and worker physiology in honeybees (Apis mellifera)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About