Papers by Stanley Schneider
Ethology, 2004
We examined the association between the vibration signal and juvenile hormone (JH) titers of hone... more We examined the association between the vibration signal and juvenile hormone (JH) titers of honeybees by comparing vibrated recipients and nonvibrated control workers that had been matched for age, colony of origin, and time of collection. Recipients collected at the moment they received vibration signals (0-min bees) did not have higher JH titers compared with controls, which suggests that a worker's initial JH level did not influence its likelihood of receiving signals. In contrast, JH titers in workers collected 15-30 min after receiving vibration signals were slightly, but significantly higher than those of controls monitored for the same amount of time. These trends were consistent among colonies, despite the fact that we collected different age ranges of workers and observed pronounced variation in JH titers within and between the 0-and 15-30min groups of bees. Thus, over a broad age range of workers the vibration signal may contribute to elevated JH levels, and this effect does not occur because recipients have higher titers at the moment they receive signals. Because JH affects response thresholds in honeybees, increased titers elicited by the vibration signal may allow the signal to influence the performance of a variety of tasks in different worker age groups.
Insectes Soc, 1992
Summary The relationship between the annual colony cycle and seasonal patterns of forage availabi... more Summary The relationship between the annual colony cycle and seasonal patterns of forage availability was investigated for the African honey bee,Apis mellifera scutellata, in the Okavango River Delta, Botswana. The annual cycle occurred in three distinct periods. The swarming season occurred from October-November, following two to three months of intense brood production, and coincided with the end of peak forage
Ethology, 2010
We hypothesize two functions of the vibration signal (dorsal ventral abdominal vibration = DVAV) ... more We hypothesize two functions of the vibration signal (dorsal ventral abdominal vibration = DVAV) during swarming in honey bees: I. it enhances recruitment to the specific sites advertised by the waggle dancers which also perform the vibration signal; and 2. it acts as a nonspecific modulatory signal to stimulate activity in other bees. The stimulation of activity invoked by the second hypothesis might include increasing nest-site scouting and dance following early in the house-hunting process or rousing quiescent bees to prepare them for lift-off late in the process, or both. In studies of neotropical African bee swarms in Costa Rica and European bees in California we tested these hypotheses by looking for associations between production of vibration signals by nest-site recruiters and site attractiveness (indicated by which site was ultimately chosen and by distance from the swarm since swarms may have a distance preference). Overall, bees dancing for the chosen sites performed vibration signals to the same extent as those dancing for the other sites. There were no distance differences between sites whose scouts did and did not vibrate other bees. These results are inconsistent with the hypothesis that the vibration signal enhances recruitment to especially high quality sites and they support the hypothesis that it plays a general excitatory role in the context of house hunting by swarming bees.
interests address the biology and behavior of honey bee queens-using techniques including field m... more interests address the biology and behavior of honey bee queens-using techniques including field manipulations, behavioral observation, instrumental insemination, and molecular genetics.
Insectes Sociaux, Nov 1, 2002
The interactions of worker honey bees with queens cells could influence the outcome of the queen ... more The interactions of worker honey bees with queens cells could influence the outcome of the queen replacement process, and could potentially contribute to the spread of the African honey bee in the New World if workers exhibit racial preferences during queen rearing. We examined worker-queen cell interactions in hybrid colonies that contained African and European patrilines. Worker interactions were associated with a queen's emergence success (e. g. the probability that she would develop to emergence). Compared to queen cells that were destroyed, those that emerged were initiated sooner during the rearing process, were started from younger brood, were visited and incubated at higher rates, and received more vibration signals from workers. In contrast, the worker interactions examined did not influence emergence order (e.g. the sequence that queens emerged relative to one another). African-and European-paternity queens experienced similar emergence success, and did not differ in the rates at which workers visited, incubated or vibrated their cells. African-patriline workers were more likely to engage in queen rearing than their European-paternity nestmates. Workers of both patrilines exhibited super-sister preferences when visiting queen larvae, but showed variable or no kin discrimination during incubation and vibration signal activity. Thus, honey bee workers may use a variety of mechanisms to influence queen development. However, they do not exhibit marked racial or kinship preferences when interacting with queen cells, suggesting that the queen rearing process has not contributed strongly to the spread of the African bee in the Western Hemisphere.
Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, Jul 3, 2003
The function of the vibration signal of the honey bee (Apis mellifera) during house hunting was i... more The function of the vibration signal of the honey bee (Apis mellifera) during house hunting was investigated by removing vibrating bees from swarms and examining the effects on waggle dancing for nest sites, liftoff preparations and swarm movement. We compared house hunting among three swarm types: (1) test swarms (from which vibrating bees were removed), (2) manipulated control (MC) swarms (from which randomly selected workers and some waggle dancers were removed), and (3) unmanipulated control (UC) swarms (from which no bees were removed). The removal of vibrating bees had pronounced effects on liftoff preparations and swarm movement. Compared to the MC and UC swarms, the test swarms had significantly greater liftoffpreparation periods, were more likely to abort liftoff attempts, and in some cases were unable to move to the chosen site after the swarm became airborne. However, the three swarm types did not differ in overall levels of waggle dance activity, the time required to achieve consensus for a nest site, the rate at which new waggle dancers were recruited for the chosen site, or the ability to maintain levels of worker piping necessary to prepare for flight. The removal of vibrating bees may therefore have altered liftoff behavior because of a direct effect on vibration signal activity. A primary function of the signal during house hunting may be to generate a level of activity in workers that enhances and coordinates responses to other signals that stimulate departure and movement to a new location.
Apidologie, 2003
Honeybee queens with either European or African maternity were mated to African and European dron... more Honeybee queens with either European or African maternity were mated to African and European drones to determine rates of sperm utilization. The first month after the queens were inseminated, they produced equal proportions of workers with African and European paternity. However, for the next 3-4 months, more than 70% of the workers produced by queens of either matriline had African paternity. Overall, the queens produced a majority of workers with African paternity during the six-month study period. The possible impact that a higher rate of sperm utilization from African drones might have on the Africanization process is discussed.
2009 Workshop on Applications of Computer Vision (WACV), 2009
... It is adapted using Kalman filtering. The adaptation procedure for appearance template for ea... more ... It is adapted using Kalman filtering. The adaptation procedure for appearance template for each part is identical. ... The error is computed for the parameters defined in the shape model. Overall, the translation error was 8.7 pixels and the ro-tation was 16.5 ◦. ...
Journal of Insect Behavior, 1989
Recruitment patterns were investigated for the African honey bee in the Okavango River Delta, Bot... more Recruitment patterns were investigated for the African honey bee in the Okavango River Delta, Botswana. The waggle dances of two observation colonies maintained in the field were monitored and used to construct maps of daily recruitment activity. These maps revealed that the African colonies frequently adjusted the allocation of recruits among food patches, recruited for 16–17 different food sites/day over
Apidologie, 2008
The migration dance is a type of dance behavior typically found in tropical honey bee colonies th... more The migration dance is a type of dance behavior typically found in tropical honey bee colonies that are preparing for seasonal absconding. Here we report the occurrence of migration-like dances in colonies of European honey bees, Apis mellifera, preparing for reproductive swarming. Compared to waggle dances performed during the same periods, the migration dances lacked the "figure-8" pattern of performance, could be performed when there was no flight from the hive, did not necessarily stimulate immediate recruitment, communicated extreme but highly variable distances, and did not communicate consistent directions of travel. Because the dance occurs when colonies are preparing for both seasonal absconding and swarming, we proposed that it be called the "relocation dance". The possible functions of relocation dances during preparations for reproductive swarming are discussed.
Apidologie, 1995
— The movement patterns of neotropical African honey bee colonies were investigated by moni... more — The movement patterns of neotropical African honey bee colonies were investigated by monitoring the waggle dance activity associated with nest site selection by 10 artificially created swarm clusters. Eight of the swarms carried African mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and 2 had European mtDNA. The latter were classified as Africanized hybrids, ie European matrilines mated to African drones. Scout bees performed recruitment dances for a mean ± SD of 12.2 ± 6.6 different potential nest sites located 3 429 ± 894 m from the swarm clusters. The mean distance communicated for the nest site ultimately selected was 4 693 ± 1 728 m. Neotropical African and hybrid swarms did not differ in the number of nest sites investigated or the mean distances communicated. Swarming behavior may account for 6-18% of the total distance traveled by neotropical African bees each year. Apis mellifera scutellata / Africanized honey bee / neotropical African honey bee / swarm / waggle dance / mitochondrial DNA
Journal of Insect Behavior, 1990
Absconding behavior was investigated in a naturally occurring population of honey bees in the Oka... more Absconding behavior was investigated in a naturally occurring population of honey bees in the Okavango River Delta, Botswana. Fifty percent of all colonies excavated in the field between October and December had abandoned the nest or were preparing for absconding, suggesting that an "absconding season" began in the Delta in October or November. However, the factors influencing absconding during this period were unclear, and there were no distinct differences in nest characteristics of the absconding and nonabsconding colonies. Waggle dance activity in observation colonies preparing for absconding was not used to preselect a specific nest site prior to departure. However, in two of the three colonies examined recruitment activity indicated the general direction of colony travel. The distances indicated by these dancers ranged between 6 and 16 km. Since these distances were three to four times greater than those communicated by dancers in nonabsconding colonies, workers from absconding colonies may sample potential forage or nest sites well outside their regular foraging range.
Journal of Insect Behavior, 1993
The relationship between changes in foraging patterns 6nferred from waggle dance activity) and co... more The relationship between changes in foraging patterns 6nferred from waggle dance activity) and colony energy status (inferred from brood rearing activity, food storage, and colony weight) was examined for the African honey bee during a period of relative resource abundance and resource dearth. When resources were more abundant mean foraging distances (about 400 m) and foraging areas (4-5 km 2) were small, and colonies recruited to 12-19 different sites per day. Colony foraging ranges and sites visited increased slightly during the dearth period, yet foraging continued to be concentrated within less than 10 km 2. The degree to which fluctuations in foraging patterns were correlated with colony energy status varied with the availability of floral resources. During periods of relative forage abundance, increases in foraging range and number of sites visited were significantly correlated with increases in brood rearing and colony weight. In contrast, colonies examined during periods of resource dearth exhibited no correlations between foraging areas, foraging distances, and fluctuations in brood rearing, food storage, or colony weight. Thus, during dearth periods colonies may not be able to coordinate foraging patterns with changes in colony energy status.
Journal of Insect Behavior, 1991
... In contrast, in queenless (QL) colonies, aggression among workers occurs normally (Evers and ... more ... In contrast, in queenless (QL) colonies, aggression among workers occurs normally (Evers and Seeley, 1986). ... Anim. Behav. 39: 413-425. Evers, C., and Seeley, T. (1986). Kin discrimination and aggression in honeybee colonies with laying workers. Anim. Behav. 34: 924-925. ...
Insectes Sociaux, 2008
We examined the dynamics of the queen replacement process in African and European colonies that d... more We examined the dynamics of the queen replacement process in African and European colonies that did and did not produce afterswarms. In colonies without afterswarms, the queen replacement process was completed in 24 -48 hours, the first-emerging virgin queen (VQ) typically inherited the natal nest even if multiple queens emerged, workers performed few vibration signals on emerged queens, and all signaling activity was directed toward early emerging VQs. In contrast, if colonies did produce afterswarms, the queen replacement process required 5 -6 days, there was no advantage for first-emerging queens, vibration rates on emerged queens were 25 times greater, and signaling activity was directed toward all VQs. Although vibration signal activity was more pronounced in colonies with afterswarms, the signal was consistently associated with increased VQ survival under all conditions. These trends were exhibited similarly in the African and European colonies, suggesting that they have broad applicability to queen-replacement decisions over a range of environmental and racial conditions. However, the African and European colonies differed in the total number of queens involved in the elimination process and the relative importance of queen duels and pre-emergence destruction under the different reproductive strategies. Taken together, our results suggest that worker behavior is a major determinant for the outcome of queen replacement, either through reduced interactions that allow first-emerged queens to rapidly eliminate rivals, or through increased use of interactions such as the vibration signal, which may allow workers to influence the ultimate fate of each emerged VQ. We discuss the possibility that these behavior patterns may reflect the roles of cooperation and conflict in shaping honey bee reproductive decisions.
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Papers by Stanley Schneider