Study Reveals Honeybees’ Nutritional Strategies for Larvae
According to recent research, honeybees create a specialized “baby food” for their larvae, ensuring they receive a well-rounded diet. Interestingly, adult bees can also self-regulate their consumption based on the nutritional quality of available pollen.
The study found that honeybees adjust their eating habits if pollen sources don’t offer the right balance of essential amino acids—critical components of protein that animals need from their diet since they can’t produce them naturally.
Published in Current Biology, the findings indicate that wild bee species, which often feed pollen to their young directly, thrive only when there is a diverse array of pollen sources. Landowners aiming to attract pollinators should consider not just the quantity of flowers, but also the variety and nutritional value of the pollen available.
While nectar primarily offers sugars, pollen serves as the main protein source for bees. However, pollen—being the male reproductive material of plants—often lacks the complete nutrient profile bees need for optimal health.
Geraldine Wright, a professor of entomology at the University of Oxford and the study’s lead author, noted that “pollen is generally thought to be a perfect food for bees, but its primary purpose is not to feed pollinators, which creates a bit of a conflict between the needs of plants and pollinators.”
Wright and her colleagues analyzed the essential amino acid profiles of honeybee tissues against pollen from 99 types of British flowering plants. They created controlled diets mimicking either the amino acid profiles of various pollen or honeybee tissues, testing these on newly emerged worker honeybees.
Most pollen tested did not match the essential amino acid profiles of bee tissues well. The bees on diets closely aligned to their tissue composition showed increased food intake, gained more body mass, and consumed a protein-rich balance.
The researchers suggested that this adjustment in eating habits might relate to histidine, an amino acid essential in small quantities. They provided artificial diets varying in histidine content to observe its impact. When the histidine level was higher, bees tended to eat less overall, including protein and carbohydrates.
Further collaboration with researchers from several other universities revealed that honeybees have developed strategies to ensure their young have balanced diets. Bees collect pollen from various flowers, storing it as “bee bread.” Nurse bees then process this pollen into glandular secretions, like royal jelly, which is crucial for feeding larvae.
Analysis of bee bread showed that its amino acid profile was generally more balanced than most single pollen sources, with royal jelly being even better, matching bee tissue profiles closely. This suggests that mixing pollen and processing it into bee bread might help colonies deal with the nutritional deficits of individual pollen sources.
Wright concluded, “We believe that honeybees have adapted to produce glandular secretions that offer their larvae the optimal amino acid ratios for growth. Therefore, planting initiatives for pollinators should not only focus on seasonal flower availability but also prioritize a diverse range of pollen sources, as a varied diet may be crucial for bees to acquire essential nutrients.”
