In these unique videos, you can see rare behaviors of honey bees, such as mouth-to-mouth feeding of larvae, cannibalism, or accumulating pollen.
A team of scientists managed to capture the video for the first time The behaviors of honey bees in their hives have never been seen before, such as cleaning habits or the practice of cannibalism against the most vulnerable members of society.
The study was published on March 17, 2021 in the journal PLoS ONE, It was led by German scientist Paul Siefer from Goethe University.
The results helped to better understand the social dynamics of European bees (Apis Mellifera) characterized by large and complex colonies where the collective behavior of unique individuals is what determines the success of the colony.
Bees in a beehive in Denny, Belgium.
Like behaviors Building nests, foraging for food, storing and maturing these foods, raising young, regulating temperature in the hive as well as their hygiene or defense. These activities mostly occur within the cell structure itself and are not easy to monitor, so this is the study by Seifert and colleagues Colleagues represent major advances in understanding these insects that are vital to the survival of other species on Earth due to their important role in the pollination process..
German scientists were then able to record videos showing the entire honeycomb, as well as individual frames and cells inside the hive, providing new insights into individual bird behavior.
Bees have never been observed in their individual hives.
For these videos, the authors consistently recorded the cut honeycomb cells within the brood area in their observation cells with the frames rotated 90 degrees to increase visibility, allowing a side view of the cells in the middle of the colony.
The recordings show a variety of behaviors of workers, pups, and queens within the brood cells. Including laying eggs queen. Hatching of larval pupae and embryos; Inspection of nursing workers and larval feeders; Workers use existing wax chips and nesting materials to reshape the combs; Storing pollen and nectar in cells; And hygienic practices, such as cannibalism, personal care, and surface cleaning.
Cannibalism is the practice of bees in their hives.
Additionally, Seifert and colleagues captured several previously undocumented processes. Such as mouth-to-mouth feeding of pathogenic bees to their larvae, as well as thermoregulation of pathogenic bees within the cells containing the developing brood, which causes the eggs to descend inside the honeycomb cells.
The large number of videos that provide specific examples of bee behavior will open the eyes of scientists, as well as beekeepers and the general public. The authors especially hope that their material will help Raise awareness of the drastic reduction in the number of pollinators and bees, and encourage the use of your work for educational purposes.
The authors add: In this study, the authors provide a comprehensive source of online video material that provides insight into the behavior of honey bees within honeycomb hives in a working colony. By providing a novel method of monitoring for the scientific community, beekeepers, and the general public, the authors are calling attention to the general decline in biomass And the diversity of insects. “
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