<i>Response</i>
            : Fluorescent Nectar

Thorp, Robbin W.; Briggs, D. L.; Estes, James R.; Erickson, E. H.

doi:10.1126/science.194.4262.342

Cited by 10 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 5 publications

(2 reference statements)

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“…We found that bumblebees could not detect nectar levels in inflorescences that had not been visited, and so readily accepted inflorescences that had been depleted of nectar artificially. Thus they are unlikely to be using either direct vision of nectar, detection of humidity gradients or nectar scent to discriminate between inflorescences (Thorp et al 1975(Thorp et al , 1976Kevan 1976;Corbet et al 1979). The flower structure of S. officinale would in any case render these explanations unlikely since the nectaries are entirely enclosed within the corolla, and bees can gain access only by forcing apart the anther bases that form a barrier across the inside of the tubular corolla (although robbing holes provides a limited direct view of nectaries).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several mechanisms may be in operation. Bees can assess pollen content of open flowers visually (Zimmerman 1982), and may be able to determine the nectar content of some flower species in the same way (Thorp et al 1975(Thorp et al , 1976Kevan 1976). They may also be able to assess nectar volumes from the scent of the nectar itself or of fermentation products from yeasts in the nectar (Crane 1975;Heinrich 1979;Williams et al 1981), or from humidity gradients surrounding the flower (Corbet et al 1979).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Foraging bumblebees avoid flowers already visited by conspecifics or by other bumblebee species

1998

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Foraging bumblebees avoid flowers already visited by conspecifics or by other bumblebee species

1998

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“…However, little is known about their reproductive and taxonomic importance (Dafni, 1984 [3] ; van der Pijl, 1960 [30] , Vogel, 1998 [33] ). Thorp et al (1975 [27] , 1976 [28] ) and Kevan (1976 [12] , 1978 [13] ) discussed whether or not the nectar fluoresces or only reflects the light to become more visible to flower visitors. In any case, nectar should be highly visible as glistening droplets and act as a visual attractant, both in visible and ultraviolet wavelengths.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Insect Attracting Structures on Erodium Petals (Geraniaceae)

2000

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Two types of structures previously unrecorded in Erodium petals are investigated. Spherical hairs filled with liquid resembling nectar droplets are exclusive to an ibero‐mauritanic group of species included in Erodium subsect. Romana. Broad flat hairs which reflect light, shining as do nectar droplets, are restricted to most of the species included in Erodium sect. Malacoidea. Long, simple hairs in petals and sepals are involved in collection of nectar droplets. Some of them are arranged at the margin of the petal claw, just over the nectaries. Others are on the internal surface of sepals or on the upper surface of petals, serving apparently the same function. Their shape is aciculate or flattened. The nectar collected among the hairs forms shining spherical droplets, perceptible to insects. The glistening flat hairs and spheres shine in a similar way, probably mimicking nectar and attracting insects. Species with these special nectar‐like structures produce nectar in quantities that can be observed by the naked eye, suggesting that these structures increase the attraction efficiency of flowers. Some taxonomic and biogeographic consequences are also discussed.

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“…Thus it appears that bumblebees use some means of remote sensing for their decision on what flower to probe. Possible mechanisms include direct detection of the nectar by visual (Kevan, 1976;Thorp et al, 1975Thorp et al, , 1976 or olfactory (Raguso, 2004) cues. However, many bumblebee-visited plant species have flowers in which nectar is concealed at the base of deep corolla tubes, which makes direct assessment of nectar volume problematic.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of scent deposits on flower choice: experiments in an artificial flower array with bumblebees

Witjes

Eltz

2006

Apidologie

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-Foraging bumblebees leave chemical substances when visiting flowers and the detection of these "scent marks" improves their foraging efficiency. Whereas laboratory studies found that scent-marks convey attraction to food sources, all field studies found foragers to be repelled by recently visited flowers. In this study we aim to resolve this conflict by implementing near-natural reward dynamics in a laboratory feeder array. When feeders were filled with small, non-replenished amounts of reward, worker bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) avoided revisiting the depleted feeders. As evidenced by a "corolla" replacement experiment, feeder discrimination was based on the perception of chemical cues deposited during previous visits. Pentane extracts of bumblebee tarsi acted as a repellent when applied to glass corollas, whereas pure pentane did not. We suggest that scent-marks are simple cues inherent to footprints and emphasize the importance of context to how these cues are interpreted by foraging bees.flower discrimination / repellent scent marks / chemical cue / signal / bumble bees / Bombus

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Response : Fluorescent Nectar

Cited by 10 publications

References 5 publications

Foraging bumblebees avoid flowers already visited by conspecifics or by other bumblebee species

Foraging bumblebees avoid flowers already visited by conspecifics or by other bumblebee species

Insect Attracting Structures on Erodium Petals (Geraniaceae)

Influence of scent deposits on flower choice: experiments in an artificial flower array with bumblebees

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