Peters Jacob M, Gravish Nick, Combes Stacey A
OEB, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
OEB, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
J Exp Biol. 2017 Jun 15;220(Pt 12):2203-2209. doi: 10.1242/jeb.149476. Epub 2017 Apr 12.
Honey bees () are remarkable fliers that regularly carry heavy loads of nectar and pollen, supported by a flight system - the wings, thorax and flight muscles - that one might assume is optimized for aerial locomotion. However, honey bees also use this system to perform other crucial tasks that are unrelated to flight. When ventilating the nest, bees grip the surface of the comb or nest entrance and fan their wings to drive airflow through the nest, and a similar wing-fanning behavior is used to disperse volatile pheromones from the Nasonov gland. In order to understand how the physical demands of these impeller-like behaviors differ from those of flight, we quantified the flapping kinematics and compared the frequency, amplitude and stroke plane angle during these non-flight behaviors with values reported for hovering honey bees. We also used a particle-based flow visualization technique to determine the direction and speed of airflow generated by a bee performing Nasonov scenting behavior. We found that ventilatory fanning behavior is kinematically distinct from both flight and scenting behavior. Both impeller-like behaviors drive flow parallel to the surface to which the bees are clinging, at typical speeds of just under 1 m s We observed that the wings of fanning and scenting bees frequently contact the ground during the ventral stroke reversal, which may lead to wing wear. Finally, we observed that bees performing Nasonov scenting behavior sometimes display 'clap-and-fling' motions, in which the wings contact each other during the dorsal stroke reversal and fling apart at the start of the downstroke. We conclude that the wings and flight motor of honey bees comprise a multifunctional system, which may be subject to competing selective pressures because of its frequent use as both a propeller and an impeller.
蜜蜂（）是出色的飞行者，经常携带大量花蜜和花粉，其飞行系统——翅膀、胸部和飞行肌肉——人们可能认为是为空中移动而优化的。然而，蜜蜂也利用这个系统执行其他与飞行无关的关键任务。在给蜂巢通风时，蜜蜂抓住巢脾表面或巢入口，扇动翅膀以驱动气流通过蜂巢，类似的扇翅行为也用于散发纳氏腺的挥发性信息素。为了了解这些类似叶轮行为的物理需求与飞行需求有何不同，我们对拍动运动学进行了量化，并将这些非飞行行为期间的频率、振幅和冲程平面角度与报道的悬停蜜蜂的值进行了比较。我们还使用基于粒子的流动可视化技术来确定执行纳氏信息素释放行为的蜜蜂产生的气流方向和速度。我们发现通风扇翅行为在运动学上与飞行和信息素释放行为都不同。这两种类似叶轮的行为都驱动气流平行于蜜蜂所附着的表面，典型速度略低于1米/秒。我们观察到，扇翅和释放信息素的蜜蜂的翅膀在腹侧冲程反转期间经常接触地面，这可能导致翅膀磨损。最后，我们观察到执行纳氏信息素释放行为的蜜蜂有时会表现出“拍翅并甩开”动作，即翅膀在背侧冲程反转期间相互接触，并在向下冲程开始时甩开。我们得出结论，蜜蜂的翅膀和飞行运动器官构成了一个多功能系统，由于其既频繁用作螺旋桨又用作叶轮，可能会受到相互竞争的选择压力。
