Molecular Determinants of Scouting Behavior in Honey Bees

Abstract

Bee Adventurous Individuals differ in their behavior, sometimes in consistent ways. For example, some people may seek out new experiences, while others prefer to stick with what they know. This is true in bees as well, where some workers take on the dangerous, novelty-seeking task of scouting more often than others. Liang et al. (p. 1225 ) found that bees that display such scouting behavior not only tend to scout in multiple contexts (both foraging and searching for nests) but also show differences in gene expression in their brains. Experimental manipulation of gene expression predictably changed scouting behavior. The molecular underpinnings of bee scouting behavior appear to be similar to those associated with novelty-seeking in vertebrate species, including humans.