Temporal polyethism and behavioural canalization in the honey bee, Apis mellifera

Abstract Two models of temporal polyethism in the honey bee were evaluated. The developmental-programme model asserts a causal relationship between age and task performance. The foraging-for-work model asserts that this relationship is an epiphenomenon associated with a self-organizing system. The effect of a worker's pre-foraging environment on task selection as a forager was also examined. Four groups of workers, emerging at 6-day intervals, were introduced to a colony. Workers in group 1 were introduced when less than 12 h old. Workers in groups 2 and 3 were divided into deprived and non-deprived groups. Non-deprived groups were introduced to the colony when less than 12 h old. Deprived groups were confined to an incubator for 12 days and 6 days, respectively, then introduced to the colony along with group 4 (