Visible and near-infrared spectroscopy detects queen honey bee insemination

La spectroscopie visible et la spectrométrie IR proche détectent l'insémination des reines d'abeilles

Thomas C. Webster , Floyd E. Dowell , Elizabeth B. Maghirang , Etta M. Thacker

The abdomens of honey bee queens and semen from drone bees were analyzed by visible and near-infrared spectroscopy. Mated honey bee queens could be distinguished from virgin queens by their absorption spectra with 100% accuracy. Spectra of semen showed that classifications of queens were likely influenced by the presence or absence of semen in the queen spermathecae. However, physiological or morphological changes that occur in the queens after mating probably influenced the classifications also.

Mots clés: mating; queen bee; spectroscopy<br>---<br>Apis mellifera; accouplement; reine d'abeille; sperme; spectroscopie; Apis mellifera; drone semen

Domaines: Zoologie des invertébrés; Biodiversité; Ecologie, Environnement; Science des productions animales

Thomas C. Webster, Floyd E. Dowell, Elizabeth B. Maghirang, Etta M. Thacker. Visible and near-infrared spectroscopy detects queen honey bee insemination. Apidologie, 2009, 40 (5), ⟨10.1051/apido/2009038⟩. ⟨hal-00892011⟩