Jan 11, 2021
Honey bees are one of the most fascinating and complex social
organisms on our planet. Scientists like Gene Robinson research how
their genomics play a central role in this behavior and how their
environment in turn affects their genes.
Listen and learn
Gene Robinson is the director of
the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, an institute that
practices team science within a multi-disciplinary scheme. He's
been studying entomology and different species of bees for over 45
years. In this conversation, he shares some fascinating notes about
honey bee behavior with listeners.
His group in the institute in particular looks at their social
behavior mechanisms and evolution from a genomics perspective.
Interestingly, he says that studies indicate layers of
individuality and adaptability in bee society—not only are they not
all "marching to the same orders," they can change behavior
depending on what is happening with the colony.
In one study, his lab monitored
the entry and exit of the hive and found that a minority of the
hive worked as foragers. In addition, a small group within the
foragers took on a significant 50% of the work. However, when they
removed those power-house foragers, the colony did not collapse.
Rather, the other bees "upped their foraging game" and made up for
the loss. "So while labor is apportioned, it's not fixed and
there's flexibility," adds Robinson.
He describes other remarkable modes of flexibility, from pheromone
releasing and withholding to determine maturity rates to how a hive
survives a queen loss. Along the way he explains how the history of
genomics has rearranged how biologists look at bee behavior and
development from transcriptomic studies. In fact, dramatic changes
are evident in bee brain gene activity depending on their rearing
conditions. Based on these studies, their genome is very sensitive
to the environment.
For more, see the
Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic
Biology and
Gene Robinson's lab
website.
Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK