httpwwwcellcomcurrentbiologyabstractS0960982215010544 Read b

http://www.cell.com/current-biology/abstract/S0960-9822(15)01054-4

Read below article and create a summary that answers the following questions

1. Your summary must begin with a clear statement of what you think is the primary purpose of the article.

2. Next, select, identify and discuss the specific data used in the article that supports the primary purpose.

3. Next, state and discuss the major implication(s) of the research and why you think it is important.

4. Finally, describe (with some detail) additional research that you think needs to be accomplished to extend the findings of the paper, and state why you think it is important

Solution

Summary

\"Caffeinated Forage Tricks Honeybees into Increasing Foraging and Recruitment Behaviors\"

The primary purpose :

The coevolution of insects and plants established a fine balance between the foraging behavior and pollination benefitting both of them. However, both the organisms may trick each other to get their work done. A recent report suggested that presence of caffeine in the nectar of flower may stimulate the honey to estimate more sugar content in the flower than the original one. The research is aimed to understand the behavior under the field settings.

Specific data used:

The honeybees were trained to forage on specific feeders containing sucrose solution with or without caffeine. The sucrose collection significantly increased in the feeder with caffeine. Moreover, waggle dance which is a behavior to recruit more workers for the sucrose collection was altered positively to recruit more workers.

The feeder containing sucrose with or without caffeine were then replaced with the empty feeder to record the tendency of the honeybees to return. The tendency to return was more in caffeine-treated bees as compared with the treated with the sucrose alone.

Further, site specificity was also more in the caffeine-treated honeybees compared to the control group, i.e., unlike honey bees treated with sucrose alone, the caffeine-treated ones declined to look for alternative sucrose source in the vicinity.

Despite increased foraging behavior in caffeine-treated bees, the honey content in their hives was found reduced.

Major implications of the research and its importance:

Apiculture is a lucrative side activity of a farmer that requires minimal resources and man hours.The loss in honey production may adversely affect the economy of poor farmers. On the other hand, this adaptation is advantageous to the plant that can derive maximum pollination by utilizing minimal sucrose.

Additional research to extend the finding of the paper:

The authors described the effect of caffeine on the quantity of the honey produced, however, no data is generated on the quality of the honey produced, Therefore, the data on the quality of honey produced by the honey bees treated with the caffeine in the sucrose need to be documented.