Host recognition in a pollen-specialist bee: evidence for a genetic basis

Praz, Christophe; Müller, Andreas; Dorn, Silvia

doi:10.1051/apido:2008034

Cited by 45 publications

(51 citation statements)

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“…Incorporation of a new pollen host, however, does not only require physiological adaptations of the bee larvae to cope with the chemistry of the new pollen, but also neurological adaptations of the mother bee to recognize and exploit the host flowers. In fact, female host plant preference and larval performance are not necessarily correlated in herbivorous insects (Mayhew , ) or in bees (Praz, Müller & Dorn ) as is suggested by the ‘preference–performance hypothesis’ or ‘optimal oviposition theory’ (Jaenike ). Females of the pollen specialist solitary bee species Heriades truncorum refrained from collecting pollen on the flowers of two non‐hosts although pollen of both non‐host species were experimentally found to support larval development (Praz, Müller & Dorn ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…). Constraints that impede the easy and rapid acquisition of new pollen hosts may be due to neurological limitations related to the recognition or handling of flowers (Praz, Müller & Dorn ) or to physiological limitations related to pollen digestion, including lack of essential nutrients (Levin & Haydak ; Suárez‐Cervera et al . ; Williams ; Praz, Müller & Dorn ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Intra‐ and interpopulational variation in the ability of a solitary bee species to develop on non‐host pollen: implications for host range expansion

2013

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Summary1. Pollen host choice in bees is in many cases highly conserved, which might partly be due to physiological limitations of bee larvae to digest non-host pollen. These limitations need to be overcome in order to incorporate new pollen hosts; however, the mechanisms underlying such host expansion are poorly understood. 2. In this study, we examined intra-and interpopulational variation in the ability of larvae of the solitary bee species Osmia cornuta (Megachilidae) to develop on a non-host pollen diet of Ranunculus acris (Ranunculaceae) by comparing larval performance within and between five geographically distant European populations. 3. The majority of bee larvae from all tested populations died when reared on the Ranunculus pollen diet. Between 10% and 43Á5% of all larvae per population reached the cocoon stage, and 48% of these emerged as viable adults from the cocoons, indicating that the physiological ability to cope with the unfavourable properties of Ranunculus pollen exists in each population. 4. The bee larvae of one population exhibited significantly reduced survival on the Ranunculus pollen diet compared with three of the four other populations. 5. Although bees that successfully developed on the Ranunculus pollen diet showed a distinctly prolonged development time, exhibited higher mortality during diapause and reached a considerably lower adult weight compared with individuals fed the control pollen diet, several of the Ranunculus fed individuals were able to reproduce and to sire viable offspring. 6. This study provides the first evidence for both intra-and interpopulational variation in the physiological ability of solitary bees to digest non-host pollen. This variation might enable host expansion and subsequent host shifts in response to natural selection.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Intra‐ and interpopulational variation in the ability of a solitary bee species to develop on non‐host pollen: implications for host range expansion

2013

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“…In oligolegs the innate behaviour pattern is of great interest, because newly emerged, foraging‐naïve females have to be able to find and recognize their host plants on their very first foraging trips. Praz, Müller & Dorn (2008) were able to show that the pollen specialization in oligolectic bees has a genetic basis. Individuals of Heriades truncorum (Megachilidae) restricted pollen collection to their host, although they were reared on non‐host pollen.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Host‐plant finding and recognition by visual and olfactory floral cues in an oligolectic bee

2010

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Summary1. Bees use floral cues, such as odour, colour, size and shape, to discriminate and recognize flowers. The interplay between visual and olfactory cues in social as well as in solitary bee species is poorly understood. 2. In this study we tested the host finding and recognition behaviour in a specialized (oligolectic) bee species, Hoplitis adunca (Megachilidae), which collects pollen exclusively on flowers of Echium (Boraginaceae) species. We determined the importance of visual (especially floral colour) and olfactory cues of Echium vulgare flowers in host-plant finding and recognition, as well as in the discrimination of non-host plants (Anchusa officinalis), by foraging-naı¨ve and -experienced H. adunca females. 3. Our investigations showed that the interplay between visual and olfactory cues of E. vulgare flowers is essential for host-plant finding and recognition by H. adunca females. The finding suggests that the blue colour of the flowers attracts the bees, while the olfactory cues, which are Echium-specific, are used by the bees to recognize their host plant and discriminate it from non-host plants. 4. Our results show that different modalities of floral cues need to be studied in a combined approach in order to understand the communication in bee-flower interactions and the cues used by bees to find and recognize their host-plants.

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“…; Müller & Kuhlmann ; Praz et al . ,b). For the purpose of interpreting their current pattern of genetic variation, we have assumed that the plant diet of each Melitta species studied has remained stable over time, at least for the recent time period during which the observed patterns were formed.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of past climatic changes and resource availability on the population demography of three food‐specialist bees

et al. 2015

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Past climate change is known to have strongly impacted current patterns of genetic variation of animals and plants in Europe. However, ecological factors also have the potential to influence demographic history and thus patterns of genetic variation. In this study, we investigated the impact of past climate, and also the potential impact of host plant species abundance, on intraspecific genetic variation in three codistributed and related specialized solitary bees of the genus Melitta with very similar life history traits and dispersal capacities. We sequenced five independent loci in samples collected from the three species. Our analyses revealed that the species associated with the most abundant host plant species (Melitta leporina) displays unusually high genetic variation, to an extent that is seldom reported in phylogeographic studies of animals and plants. This suggests a potential role of food resource abundance in determining current patterns of genetic variation in specialized herbivorous insects. Patterns of genetic variation in the two other species indicated lower overall levels of diversity, and that M. nigricans could have experienced a recent range expansion. Ecological niche modelling of the three Melitta species and their main host plant species suggested a strong reduction in range size during the last glacial maximum. Comparing observed sequence data with data simulated using spatially explicit models of coalescence suggests that M. leporina recovered a range and population size close to their current levels at the end of the last glaciation, and confirms recent range expansion as the most likely scenario for M. nigricans. Overall, this study illustrates that both demographic history and ecological factors may have contributed to shape current phylogeographic patterns.

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Host recognition in a pollen-specialist bee: evidence for a genetic basis

Cited by 45 publications

References 45 publications

Intra‐ and interpopulational variation in the ability of a solitary bee species to develop on non‐host pollen: implications for host range expansion

Intra‐ and interpopulational variation in the ability of a solitary bee species to develop on non‐host pollen: implications for host range expansion

Host‐plant finding and recognition by visual and olfactory floral cues in an oligolectic bee

Impact of past climatic changes and resource availability on the population demography of three food‐specialist bees

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