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From:
James Fischer <[log in to unmask]>
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Date:
Sun, 30 Nov 2003 22:18:29 -0500
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Dennis said:

>> We were told in years gone by by the experts here in Australia that
>> bees do not get bigger after they are born....

The standard phrase that I have read multiple places goes something
like "Insects have no mechanism to 'grow' their cuticle."  There
are clearly several "moltings" during the larval stage of a bee,
but what books I have read (I'd guess the most "authoritative"
would be Dade's "Anatomy and Dissection of the Honeybee") do not
mention any ability to "grow" a larger head or thorax.

Note that I did not mention the abdomen in the above.
It can expand and contract.

Bill said:

> Question for the experts. Is the exo-skeleton segmented or continuous?
> If it is segmented, which I believe it is, that would allow for some
> expansion or growth.

I'm no expert, but I've post-mortemed enough bees to know that the
abdomen is segmented.  There are 9 segments, but you can only see 6.
The other 3 are part of the stinger, and are "retracted".  You hope!  :)

There is an "upper" and "lower" plate in each segment, and there is some
overlap between them. The muscles that control the expansion and contraction
of the plates are fairly fancy, with dedicated "protractor", "retractor",
"compressor", "dialator", and "torsion" muscles all controlling the armor
plate that lurks beneath the cute fuzzy coat.

All the fancy musculature is to allow honey stomachs to expand and contract,
and also allow mated queens to have bigger abdomens after they mate.

The thorax also is constructed of plates, but they cannot move any more
than is required to allow the wings to operate.  Most texts say that
the plates are "fused" to each other.

I'd guess that bees that appear "smaller" are victims of poor nutrition
(or just plain underfeeding) in the larval stage.  If eating "brood food"
after emerging could make for a bigger bee, some number of young bees would
do so even under extreme pollen shortages, and be larger.

But heck, take two eggs, feed one more, and you get a queen from it.
From the other, you get a worker.
I don't really know exactly how that works, either.


                jim (The word "Politics" comes from two Greek roots:
                 "Poly" [many], and "Tics" [blood-sucking parasites])

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