>didn't we just share a paper detailing how, when honey bees need to tweak the protein profile in the hive, they do not seek targeted pollens
Yes, I posted this reference:
WHAT GOVERNS PROTEIN CONTENT OF POLLEN: POLLINATOR PREFERENCES, POLLEN–PISTIL INTERACTIONS, OR PHYLOGENY?
T'ai H. Roulston, James H. Cane, Stephen L. Buchmann
First published: 1 November 2000
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1890/0012-9615(2000)070%5B0617:WGPCOP%5D2.0.CO;2/full
>If protein content influences pollinator visitation, then pollinators are hypothesized to select for increased protein content of host plants. We analyzed or gleaned from the literature crude pollen protein concentrations of 377 plant species from 93 plant families. Using this database, we compared pollen protein concentration with (1) pollination mode, (2) pollen collection by bees, and (3) distance from stigma to ovule, after accounting for phylogeny through paired phylogenetic comparisons and a nested ANOVA including taxonomic rank. We found that pollen protein concentrations were highly conserved within plant genera, families, and divisions. We found that bees did not collect pollen that was unusually rich in protein, whether they pollinated or merely robbed their host plant.
Also there's this study that cites many references on the subject
Assessment of pollen rewards by foraging bees
Elizabeth Nicholls, Natalie Hempel de Ibarra
First published: 7 November 2016
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2435.12778/full
>Since pollen is the major source of protein for bees, levels of this macronutrient and/or the relative abundance of amino acids have frequently been proposed as cues likely to be relevant to bees, but results are not consistent, and there appears to be no simple relationship between collection preferences and the nitrogen content of pollen (Levin & Bohart 1955; Schmidt 1982, 1984; Schmidt & Johnson 1984; van der Moezel et al. 1987; Pernal & Currie 2002). For example, when honeybees were offered a source of protein in the form of defatted soya bean flour, diluted to varying degrees with alpha-cellulose, a non-nutritional, inert powder, Pernal & Currie (2002) observed no difference in the weight of pollen loads collected by foragers, suggesting they did not discriminate between pollen samples on the basis of protein content alone. Similarly, Roulston & Cane (2002) reported that when offered pollen sources enriched with protein via the addition of soya bean meal, sweat bee foragers did not vary the volume of pollen they provisioned, even though pollen protein content was shown to affect offspring body size. As such, evidence is lacking for the bees' ability to discriminate between floral pollen on the basis of crude protein content alone, particularly within the range of naturally occurring variation.
Bill Hesbach
Northeast USA
***********************************************
The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html
|
