5.20 Function and structure of wings, legs, feet, antennae, mouthparts and setae Flashcards
What is the first area of the antenna in honeybees?
The first area is the antennifer, which forms a ball and socket joint with the head controlled by 4 muscles.
What is the longest segment of the honeybee antenna?
The longest segment is the scape.
What joint allows the antenna to flex or extend?
The scape forms a hinge joint with the pedicel.
What is the function of the Organ of Johnston?
It is thought to determine wind speed or speed of flight.
What are the subsequent segments of the antenna called?
They are called flagella (or flagellum for a single one).
How many flagella do worker and queen honeybees have?
They have 10 flagella.
How many flagella does a drone honeybee have?
A drone has 11 flagella.
What do sensilla on the antenna detect?
They detect chemicals through taste and smell.
How many placodea does a drone antenna have?
A drone antenna has around 30,000 placodea.
How many placodea does a worker and queen antenna have?
A worker has around 3,000 to 6,000, and a queen has only 1,600.
What are the complex mouthparts of a honeybee made of?
They are made of a number of separate parts including the labrum and mandibles.
What is the function of the mandibles in honeybees?
They are used for chewing, grooming, and biting invasive bees.
What is unique about the queen’s mandibles?
They have a toothed appearance and deep grooves for mandibular secretions.
What is the function of the proboscis?
It is used to suck up liquids such as nectar.
What structures form the proboscis?
It is formed from interlocking structures including the galea and glossa.
What is the function of the flabellum?
It is used to start the process of sucking up liquids.
How many pairs of wings do honeybees have?
They have 2 pairs of wings, fore and hind.
What is the tegula?
It is a flap of cuticle covering the fore wing joint.
How do honeybee wings lock together during flight?
They lock using around 20 hooks or hamuli.
What is the function of the hamuli?
They hook onto a channel on the hind wing to form a larger surface for efficient flight.
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What is the structure of honeybee legs?
They are made of segments with joints, including coxa, trochanter, femur, tibia, tarsus, and pretarsus.
What is the function of the fore leg’s groove?
It is known as the antenna cleaner, allowing bees to clean their antenna.
What is unique about the hind leg of worker honeybees?
It contains the pollen basket, pollen comb, and pollen press.
What is the corbicula?
It is the concave surface on the outer face of the tibia of the hind leg that forms the pollen basket.
What do the claws on the pretarsus do?
They are used to cling to surfaces.
What is the function of the arolium?
It is used on smooth surfaces to aid in adhesion.
What types of hairs are found on honeybees?
They can be straight or branched, with branched hairs thought to trap pollen.
* Branched hairs known as plumose hairs are thought to trap pollen but could be used to prevent particles from entering openings such as the spiracles.
* Straight hairs can be sensory providing the bee with a sense of touch.
* Others may not be linked to nerve cells and may simply be there for physical reasons for example, those of the pollen press. These are found covering the surfaces of the head, thorax and abdomen even between the ommatidia of the compound eye.
What is the proboscis formed from?
The proboscis is formed from a series of interlocking structures.
What are the cardines or spines at the top of the mouthparts used for?
They are attached to muscles and act as a lever swinging the proboscis outwards when needed and backwards when not.
How do the galea and labial palps function?
The galea lock with the labial palps to form a tube down which the glossa runs.
What role does saliva play in the proboscis?
Saliva can run down the middle of the glossa to aid in sucking movements and begin the digestion process.
How are liquids pulled up the proboscis?
By performing ‘sucking’ movements using dilator muscles in the cibarium or mouth cavity.
What is the function of the flabellum at the end of the glossa?
The flabellum is spoon-shaped and used to start the process of sucking up liquids such as water or nectar.
How does the length of the proboscis differ among drones, queens, and workers?
The whole proboscis is shorter in drones and queens compared to workers.
What are the uses of mandibles?
Mandibles are used for taking in pollen, shaping and chewing wax, fighting, grooming, dragging out debris from the nest, brood feeding, gathering and using propolis, and supporting other mouth parts.
What functions does the proboscis serve?
The main function of the proboscis is to ingest liquid (water, nectar, and honey).
The proboscis also functions in trophallaxis, licking pheromones, and exchanging them with other workers.
How does the proboscis change shape when the bee is resting?
The proboscis can be folded in a Z shape within the mouth when the bee is resting.
What role does the epipharynx play in the proboscis function?
The epipharynx forms an airtight seal at the top of the glossa to enable suction.
What is the importance of the hairy glossa?
The hairy glossa is important for collecting pollen that sticks to the hairs and is removed by the fore legs.
What is tongue lashing?
Tongue lashing is when the worker regurgitates liquid (water or nectar), spreads it on comb or the side of the hive in a thin layer, and repeatedly beats it with her tongue.
What is tongue stropping?
Tongue stropping occurs when hesitant bees entering the wrong hive pull their proboscis through their front feet when challenged by a guard.
What is honey ripening?
Honey ripening involves regurgitating nectar and holding it in a fold of the proboscis, exposing it to air.
How does saliva help in liquefying solid foods?
Saliva travels down the glossa tube, and the labellum is employed to rub it into solid food to create a liquid to be drawn up.
