The effects of structured variation in nectar standing crop on currency choice and optimal foraging by bumble bees

Foragers commonly exploit patchy habitats in which resource abundance can vary within and among patches. Studies measuring resource variation tend to consider only single sources of variation, so the extent of structured resource variation and how it impacts foraging animals are unclear. A survey of nectar abundance in five plant species revealed the spectrum from only within- to solely among-plant variation. Captive bumble bees (Bombus impatiens) confronted with an increasing component of among-inflorescence nectar variation departed inflorescences in manners that diverged increasingly from expectations of the Marginal Value Theorem (MVT). Bees apparently assess inflorescence quality on a per-patch basis, changing their exploitation behavior in response to poor or rewarding inflorescences as expected from a speed-accuracy trade-off, rather than maximizing their overall average return rate. This quantitative test of the MVT demonstrates the need to incorporate responses to variation within patches in models of forager behavior.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science (MSc)

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Biological Sciences

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

Graduate Studies

Year dc:date.issued

2014

Author dc:creator

• Simspon, Paul

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Harder, Lawrence

• Ecology

Statement dc:rights

• University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.

Language dc:language.iso

eng

DOI

http://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/28119

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:ucalgary.scholaris.ca:11023/1247