What causes wing wear in foraging bumble bees?

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Animal Behavior
• Entomology

Background:

• Insect flight is crucial but causes wing damage.
• Wing wear is a proxy for insect age and mortality risk.
• Causes of insect wing wear remain unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the causes of wing wear in bumble bees (Bombus spp.).
• To determine if flight characteristics during foraging contribute to wing damage.

Main Methods:

• Recorded bumble bee foraging behavior using digital video.
• Marked and recaptured bees to photograph wing wear over time.
• Analyzed flight characteristics: time in flight, flight frequency, and wing collisions with vegetation.

Main Results:

• Higher frequency of wing collisions significantly correlated with increased wing area loss.
• Wing wear severity increased over time in bees with more collisions.
• Neither time in flight nor flight frequency were significant predictors of wing wear.

Conclusions:

• Wing collisions with vegetation are the primary driver of wing wear in bumble bees.
• Wing wear is a behavioral indicator, not solely an age marker.
• This study links foraging behavior to lifespan via wing damage.