BEE-L Archives

Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

BEE-L@COMMUNITY.LSOFT.COM

Options: Use Monospaced Font
Show Text Part by Default
Show All Mail Headers

Message: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]
Topic: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]
Author: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]

Print Reply
Subject:
From:
Bill Truesdell <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Tue, 21 Jun 2005 10:38:25 -0400
Content-Type:
text/plain
Parts/Attachments:
text/plain (36 lines)
Medhat Nasr, Ph. D. wrote:

> Supersedure queens are raised from larvae as young as it can be.
>Although these queens are raised under their mothers' nose, the quality is
>superior. This is where you can say Darwin is at work.
>
>
How do they select them? What is at work? I should have kept Darwin out
of this.

My prior post on this guessed (scientific term for hypothesized)  that
it is random if pheromones are involved. That royal jelly is fed  in the
area of the strongest pheromone so you will get younger larva fed with a
queen present than without one present since the queen will be in the
area of the youngest larva. If no queen is around, the feeding will be
more random and the larva will be older and you will get a quicker
queen. No rational or behavioral selection involved.

Maybe there has been research on this, since it seems to be an easy
experiment. Or is something else at work here? I know the books I read
on the honey/pollen,/brood distribution pattern implied selection while
the truth was it was more random and ended that way because of the way
bees feed larva.

My problem with the research is the term "select" which implies some
rational decision has been made. I ascribe it to chance (combined with
the presence or lack of the queen pheromone). Which is Darwinism to an
extent.

Bill Truesdell
Bath, Maine

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
-- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/BEE-L for rules, FAQ and  other info ---
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

ATOM RSS1 RSS2