LEARNING IN THE AFRICANIZED HONEY-BEE - APIS-MELLIFERA L

Several series of experiments are reported that investigate-earning in the Africanized honey bee. In the first series, classical conditionin g of proboscis extension was studied by confining bees to small metal tubes where they received pairings of an odor with a 3-s feeding of su crose. After a number of odor-sucrose pairings, the bees began to exte nd their proboscis to the odor. Controls include Unpaired, Discriminat ion, and Pseudoconditioning Groups. This technique was used to look at conditioning to a light CS, and to the odors of beeswax, geraniol, ci tral, and hexanal. The results indicate that acquisition was best when sucrose was paired with the odor of beeswax. Conditioning to the rema ining odors was roughly similar, but acquisition did not occur using a light. In a second series of experiments, odors were no longer follow ed by sucrose feedings and the conditioned response slowly disappeared . With the exception of geraniol as a CS, this extinction effect did n ot occur if the animals continued to be fed on an unpaired schedule. I n a third series of experiments, conditioned inhibition was demonstrat ed when geraniol was used as conditioned stimuli, but no effect was fo und when the odors of hexanal, citral and wax were used. In a fourth s eries of experiments, unrestrained bees hew back and forth from the la boratory to the hive, where they were taught to distinguish targets ba sed on color and odor. With this technique, color and odor discriminat ion in the Africanized bees was demonstrated. In addition, it was foun d that more intruder bees visited the experimental station when the st imuli used were olfactory rather than visual. (C) 1997 Elsevier Scienc e Inc.