Temperate
Tropical
Subtropical
1000km
Aussie crops: & individual differences in bees and plasticity to adapt.
Adrian G. DyerRMIT University & Monash University
Mango trees bursting with flowers on a plantation near Kununurra, WA. ABC Landline
Stanley 600 – 800 m ASL, 48 inch ann. rain.Varieties inc Gala, Fuji, Cameo, Red Dels, Cripps Pink, Granny Smith. + PearsProduction ca. 6-10 thousand bins / 500 hect. for domestic market.
NH
Dyer AG, Boyd-Gerny S, McLoughlin S, Rosa MGP, Simonov V, Wong BBM (2012). Proc Roy Soc B 279: 3606-3615.
Parallel evolution of angiosperm colour signals: common evolutionary pressures linked to hymenopteran vision
Insect& Bird
Bird
Insect
Shrestha M, Dyer AG, Boyd-Gerny S, Wong BBM, Burd M (2013) New Phytologist 198:301-310
Burd, Stayton, Shrestha, Dyer 2014 Proc. R. Soc. B 281: 20132862.
Alpine (n=62) >3600m-4200m
(n=75)800-1400m
Shrestha , Dyer, Bhattarai , Burd (2014) J of Ecology 102, 126-135.
Nepalese Himalayas
A controlled illumination environment for bumblebee experiments.
Bees learn colour tasks differently depending upon conditioning.
Dyer & Chittka (2004) Naturwissenschaften 91, 224-227.Giurfa (2004) Naturwissenschaften 91, 228-331.
Bees learn colour tasks differently depending upon conditioning.
Dyer & Chittka (2004) Naturwissenschaften 91, 224-227.
abs diff
Dyer, Paulk & Reser (2011) Proc Roy Soc B 278: 952–959.
*Interestingly, the population of neurons exhibited a higher degree of spike time precision (a measure of how well-timed the spikes are relative to the stimulus) compared with the population of posterior-projecting neurons
C
B
A
10 0 c m
70 c m
44 c m
70 c m
50 c m 17 5 c m
15 c m 15 c m
15 c
m
20 c m
Flug a re naVid e o ka m e ra
Pro je kto r
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
Response time (sec)
Perc
ent c
orre
ct c
hoic
es
sugar vs water
sugar vs quinine
Bees exhibit speed for accuracy tradeoffs in colour discrimination
r = 0.963, p<0.001
r = 0.723, p<0.05
Chittka, Dyer, Bock & Dornhaus (2003) Nature 424, 388.
Bees trade off speed for accuracy tradeoffs in colour discrimination tasks
Burns & Dyer (2008). Diversity of speed-accuracy strategies benefits social insects. Current Biology 18, R953–R954.
Honeybee
Bumblebee Bumblebee
Honeybee
With differential conditioning to a simultaneous colour discrimination task honeybee colour discrimination was significantly better than bumblebee for both blue and yellow colours.
Dyer, Spaethe & Prack (2008) J Comp Physiol A 194: 617–627
In honeybees the Green receptor is responsible for achromatic vision when the target is at small visual angles (5<a<15º).
All 3 receptors provide input to a colour opponent system to enable colour vision for stimuli subtending a large visual angle (>15º).
Giurfa et al. (1996) J Comp Physiol A 178, 699-709.
Bumblebee detection of stimuli
Stimulus 33N provides colour, but no G-receptor contrast and bumblebees still detect this target at a visual angle of <3º, but honeybees require the same stimulus to subtend an angle of >15º.
Honeybee
Dyer, Spaethe & Prack (2008) J Comp Physiol A 194: 617–627
Trigona cf. fuscipennis, a stingless bee species fromCosta Rica
Spaethe et al. (2014) Behavioural evidence of colour vision in free flying stingless bees. J Comp Physiol A 10.1007/s00359-014-0886-2.
von Frisch (1914) Der Farbensinn und Formensinn der Biene. ZoolJahrb Allg Zool 35:1–188
Avargues-Weber, Dyer & Giurfa. (2011) Proc Roy Soc. B 278, 898-905.
Conceptualization of above and below relationships by an insect
Avargues-Weber, Dyer & Giurfa. (2011) Proc Roy Soc. B 278, 898-905.
N=8; **p<0.01, ***p<0.001
Simultaneous mastering of two abstract concepts with a miniature brain
Avarguès-Weber A, Dyer AG, Combe M, Giurfa M (2012) Proc Nat Acad Sci (USA) 109, 7481-7486
Bees were allowed to visit similarly coloured flowers (these could be discriminated following differential conditioning) for 100 visits.
N = 10 bees/group, flowers were either at the same temperature (control) or differed by 8ºC.
Can bees bind visual and temperature cues?
Dyer, Whitney, Arnold, Glover & Chittka (2006) Nature 442, 525.
Norgate M, Boyd-Gerny S, Simonov V, Rosa MGP, Heard TA, Dyer AG (2010) PLoS ONE 5(8): e12000.
Acknowledgements
Martin GiurfaAurore Avargues-WeberChrista NeumeyerLars ChittkaJohannes SpaetheMarcello RosaAlan DorinDavid Reser.
Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
Australian Research Council: DP0878968 /DP0987989/ DP130100015
Questions?
Adrian G Dyer: [email protected]
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