Evolution

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Evolution

• CASE STUDIES
• The evolution of the honeybee dance language

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Karl von Frisch 1886-1982(Nobel prize 1973)
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How does the dance encode direction?
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Prof. Lindauer goes to the tropics
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Apis cerana the Asian hive bee
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Apis dorsata the giant honeybee (or rock bee)

• up to 1 inch long

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Apis florea the dwarf honeybee

• dorsata and florea in comparison

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Apis florea (dwarf honeybee) nest

• dances are performed on the horizontal surface,
  waggle run directly oriented to the food source

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The evolution of the dance language
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(No Transcript)
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Forager behavior
Dornhaus Chittka, Nature 1999
Excited running for 13s to 10min (average 2,6 min)
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From Chittka Dornhaus 1999
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Jamming the information content of the waggle
dance
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(No Transcript)
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Measuring foraging success
Daily weight changes of a beehive can be measured
on a scale - this reflects mostly nectar intake
12,035 kg
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Benefits of dance communication are limited to
the tropical habitat
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temperate
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tropical
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Spatial aggregation in tropical and temperate
habitats
Temperate
Tropics
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The honeybees originated in tropical Asia