2. Behavioral Biology TALKS - Deutsche Zoologische Gesellschaft

the choice area more often than would be expected by chance. Also, they conducted
more flights and, importantly, harvested more fruits in the dark than in the
illuminated compartment. We conclude that LAN reduces the variety and quantity of
ecosystem services that bats provide, i.e. specifically a reduction of seed dispersal
and probably also of pollination. This might be particularly relevant in the tropics,
where ecosystem services of bats are ecologically important for ecosystem
functioning, and where at the same time the potential for light pollution to increase
is very high.
JG Boyles, PM Cryan, GF McCracken, TH Kunz (2011) Economic importance of bats in agriculture.
Science 332:41-42. SJ Ghanem, CC Voigt (2012) Increasing awareness of ecosystem services provided
by bats. In: HJ Brockmann, TJ Roper, M Naguib, JC. Mitani LW Simmons (eds.) Advances in the study of
behavior 44, Burlington Academic Press, pp. 279-302.
7. Ecology POSTERS
����40 Isabelle Flaig
Recruitment behaviour and communication in Partamona orizabaensis
Authors: Isabelle C. Flaig 1 , Ingrid Aguilar 1 , Thomas Schmitt 1 , Stefan Jarau 1
Affiliation: 1 Institute of Experimental Ecology, University of Ulm, Germany
Social insects have evolved communication systems to recruit nest mates to food
sources. Foragers of several stingless bees species deposit pheromone trails on solid
substrates to guide nest mates to food sources. Over fifty years ago, Kerr (1969)
stated that stingless bees of the genus Partamona create aerial odour trails to recruit
workers to resources. He postulated that foragers release pheromones during flight
and lead naïve bees in large groups to food sources. However, experimental proof is
lacking. We studied recruitment behaviour and communication mechanisms in the
species Partamona orizabaensis.
During field experiments, newly recruited bees had to choose between a recruitment
feeder visited by experienced foragers and an unvisited control feeder. The recruits
always preferred the recruitment feeder over the control, indicating that an efficient
recruitment to the known feeding site took place. However, we never observed scent
trail marking between the feeder and the nest.
Additionally, we recorded the bees’ choice behaviour towards feeders baited with
labial- and mandibular gland extracts, potential sources for recruitment pheromones.
The bees did not prefer any of the gland extracts. Rather, mandibular gland
compounds had a clear deterrent effect at feeders.
Chemical analyses revealed that labial gland secretions are predominately composed
of alkenes, whereas mandibular gland secretions contain alcohols and esters. This is
interesting because esters are known to serve as recruitment pheromones in trail
laying species. Whether these compounds are released by Partamona foragers during
flight in order to guide recruits to food sources needs to be clarified in future studies.
Kerr W. E. 1969. Evol. Biol. 3: 119-175
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