"How do bees find a flower?" This simple question integrates various sophisticated problems for a bee, many of which are related to the sensory biology of these animals.

Among the 400 species of stingless bees we encounter a fascinating variety of food collection, foraging and recruitment strategies. However, the sensory capacities of these bees are poorly studied. The present project investigates following topics related to the sensory biology of these bees:

(1) Do bees with different foraging strategies similarly use sensory inputs to find a food source? This question asks for the identification of the sensory mechanisms of orientation in a complex environment involving visual as well as olfactory cues.

(2) Which information do the bees code in their recruitment signals? This question aims at identifying mechanisms of perception of food source profitability.

(3) Which sensory channels are used for information transfer? To understand which hive bees are capable to "understand" the information coded within the signals of forager, the physiological characteristics of potentially involved receptors have to be determined.

(4) Do hive bees use the received information to find a food source? Both olfactory (food scent) and mechanical information (substrate vibrations and airborne sounds) might be important for the bees' choice of a food source.

Publications related to this project

(16) Nunes-Silva, P., Hrncir, M. and Imperatriz-Fonseca, V. L. (2010) A polinização por vibração. Oecol. Austral. 14, 140-151. view pdf

(15) Bispo dos Santos, S. A. B., Roselino, A. C., Hrncir, M. and Bego, L. R. (2009) Pollination of tomatoes by the stingless bee Melipona quadrifasciata and the honey bee Apis mellifera (Hymenoptera, Apidae). Genet. Mol. Res. 8, 751-757.
view pdf

(14) Roselino, A. C., Santos , S. A. B., Hrncir, M. and Bego, L. R. (2009) Differences between the quality of strawberries ( Fragaria x ananassa ) pollinated by the stingless bees Scaptotrigona aff . depilis and Nannotrigona testaceicornis. Genet. Mol. Res. 8, 539-545. view pdf

(13) Menezes C., Hrncir, M. and Kerr W. E. (2009) Case study of a mixed colony that occurred spontaneously between Scaptotrigona depilis Moure, 1942 and Nannotrigona testaceicornis Lepeletier, 1836 (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Meliponini). Genet. Mol. Res. 8, 507-514. view pdf

(12) Jarau, S. and Hrncir, M. (2009) Social insects and the exploitation of food sources - concluding thoughts. In: Food Exploitation by Social Insects: Ecological, Behavioral, and Theoretical Approaches (ed. Jarau, S. and Hrncir M.), pp. 323-330. Boca Raton, London, New York: CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group. view pdf

(11) Hrncir, M. (2009) Mobilizing the foraging force - Mechanical signals in stingless bee recruitment. In: Food Exploitation by Social Insects: Ecological, Behavioral, and Theoretical Approaches (ed. Jarau, S. and Hrncir M.), pp. 199-221. Boca Raton, London, New York: CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group. view pdf

(10) Hrncir, M. and Jarau, S. (2009) Introduction. In: Food Exploitation by Social Insects: Ecological, Behavioral, and Theoretical Approaches (ed. Jarau, S. and Hrncir M.), pp. 1-5. Boca Raton, London, New York: CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group. view pdf

(9) Jarau, S. and Hrncir, M. (eds.) (2009) Food Exploitation by Social Insects:Ecological, Behavioral, and Theoretical Approaches. Boca Raton, London, New York: CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group. CRC-Press

(8) Schorkopf, D. L. P., Hrncir, M. , Mateus, S., Zucchi, R., Schmidt, V. M. and Barth, F. G. (2009) Mandibular gland secretions of meliponine worker bees: further evidence for their role in inter- and intraspecific defence and aggression and against their role in food source signalling. J. Exp. Biol. 212, 1153-1162.
view pdf - view Inside JEB

(7) Stangler, E. S., Jarau, S., Hrncir, M. , Zucchi, R. and Ayasse, M. (2009) Identification of trail pheromone compounds from the labial glands of the stingless bee Geotrigona mombuca. Chemoecology 19, 13-19. view pdf

(6) Lichtenberg, E. M., Hrncir, M. and Nieh, J. C. (2009) A scientific note: foragers deposit attractive scent marks in a stingless bee that does not communicate food location. Apidologie 40, 1-2. view pdf

(5) Barth, F. G., Hrncir, M. and Jarau, S. (2008) Signals and cues in the recruitment behavior of stingless bees (Meliponini). J. Comp. Physiol. A 194, 313-327. view pdf

(4) Schmidt, V. M., Hrncir, M. , Schorkopf, D. L. P., Mateus, S., Zucchi, R. and Barth, F. G. (2008) Food profitability affects the intranidal recruitment behaviour in the stingless bee Nannotrigona testaceicornis. Apidologie 39, 260-272. view pdf

(3) Hrncir, M. , Schorkopf, D. L. P., Schmidt, V. M., Zucchi, R. and Barth, F. G. (2008) The sound field generated by tethered stingless bees (Melipona scutellaris): inferences on its potential as a recruitment mechanism inside the hive. J. Exp. Biol. 211, 686-698. view pdf

(2) Hrncir, M. , Gravel, A.I., Schorkopf, D. L. P., Schmidt, V. M., Zucchi, R. and Barth, F. G. (2008) Thoracic vibrations in stingless bees (Melipona seminigra): Resonances of the thorax influence vibrations associated with flight but not those associated with sound production. J. Exp. Biol. 211, 678-685. view pdf

(1) Hrncir, M. , Mateus, S. and Nascimento, F. S. (2007) Exploitation of carbohydrate food sources in Polybia occidentalis : Social cues influence foraging decisions in swarm-founding wasps. Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 61 , 975-983. view pdf