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Quantifying the dynamics of predator avoidance learning: bumblebees as a model

量化捕食者躲避学习的动态：以大黄蜂为模型

基本信息

批准号：
NE/D012813/1
负责人：
Lars Chittka
金额：
$ 42.61万
依托单位：
Queen Mary University of London
依托单位国家：
英国
项目类别：
Research Grant
财政年份：
2006
资助国家：
英国
起止时间：
2006 至无数据
项目状态：
已结题

来源：
https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=NE%2FD012813%2F1
关键词：
Quantifying dynamics predator avoidance learning

项目摘要

For many years, scientists have been fascinated by the continuous battle that rages between foraging animals and their predators. Foragers must collect sufficient food but also be able to detect and avoid predators. On the other hand, predators must try to outsmart their prey and come up with ways to catch them unawares. For example, crab spiders can blend in with their background (flowers in this case) and ambush unsuspecting flower visitors, such as bumblebees. As a result, it is impossible for foraging animals to avoid predation threats entirely, so they are faced with the tricky task of balancing risks against rewards. Animals must learn to respond to some predators: e.g. children learn to avoid wasps by getting stung! A great deal is known about how animals are able to detect the presence of predators and we also know that animals learn to avoid situations where predators are present. However, we know almost nothing about how animals learn to avoid predators. Does the number and severity of failed predation attempts encountered, or the number of observed predator attacks on others of the same species, influence the speed in which bees learn to avoid predators? Does the severity of predation risk influence how long the information about predation risk is retained in memory? We will use bumblebees as a model system to address these questions. Bumblebees are ideal animals to study predator avoidance behaviour. They are social insects and have a colony consisting of an egg-laying queen and a large workforce that collects food for the colony from flowers. But visiting flowers is a dangerous activity: ambush predators such as crab spiders lurk on flowers. In fact, scientists have estimated that a bumblebee colony might lose up to 5% of its workforce through predation every day! On the other hand, bees often manage to struggle their way out of the clutches of predators, and hence have a chance to learn both the appearance of their enemies, and to avoid the locations where an attack is likely. Bumblebees are wonderfully cooperative in laboratory experiments: their social nature means that foraging bees collect food for the colony, rather than for their own needs, so they do not become satiated and stop working. Furthermore, bumblebees can also readily be trained to collect food from artificial flowers, of almost any appearance, in the laboratory. Therefore, we will present foraging bumblebees with cutting edge computer controlled artificial flowers that simulate an attack by a crab spider. We will use infrared light barriers on these 'dangerous' flowers to switch on a plunger trapping device to trap bees as they land. By presenting bees with 'safe' rewarding (containing sugar solution) artificial flowers of one colour alongside rewarding, but dangerous, flowers of another colour that harbour model crab spiders, we will train bees to avoid dangerous flowers. We will investigate how the way that bees respond to predation attempts and learn to avoid predators depends upon: i) the relative visibility of cryptic (camouflaged) predators, ii) the number and duration of predation attempts encountered and iii) observing predation attempts on other bees. We will also test the fascinating prediction that bees from small colonies will avoid foraging from dangerous flowers (because their death would be damaging to the colony), whilst the choices made by bees from large colonies will depend on the value of rewards and risk on offer (the loss of a forager will be much less damaging to a larger, old colony). Finally, we will investigate how the results of our experiments compare with the predator avoidance behaviour of bees in nature. We will observe bees collecting food from flowers with many predators (crab spiders and orb webs) and record their behaviour. We would expect bees that have experience of predators to fly more cautiously and spend more time studying flowers before landing.

多年来，科学家们一直着迷于觅食动物和捕食者之间的持续战斗。觅食者必须收集足够的食物，但也能够发现和避免捕食者。另一方面，捕食者必须设法智取猎物，想出办法出其不意地抓住它们。例如，蟹蛛可以融入它们的背景（在这种情况下是花），伏击毫无戒心的花访客，如大黄蜂。因此，觅食动物不可能完全避免捕食威胁，因此它们面临着平衡风险和回报的棘手任务。动物必须学会对一些捕食者做出反应：例如，孩子们通过被蜇来学习躲避黄蜂！关于动物如何能够探测到捕食者的存在，我们已经知道了很多，我们也知道动物学会避开捕食者存在的情况。然而，我们对动物如何学会躲避捕食者几乎一无所知。失败的捕食尝试的数量和严重程度，或者观察到的捕食者对同一物种其他动物的攻击数量，是否会影响蜜蜂学习躲避捕食者的速度？捕食风险的严重程度是否影响捕食风险信息在记忆中保留的时间？我们将使用大黄蜂作为模型系统来解决这些问题。熊蜂是研究捕食者回避行为的理想动物。它们是社会性昆虫，有一个由产卵女王和大量劳动力组成的群体，从花朵中为殖民地收集食物。但访花是一项危险的活动：埋伏的捕食者，如蟹蛛潜伏在花上。事实上，科学家们估计，一个大黄蜂群体每天可能会因为捕食而失去多达5%的劳动力！另一方面，蜜蜂经常设法摆脱捕食者的魔爪，因此有机会了解敌人的外观，并避开可能受到攻击的地点。大黄蜂在实验室实验中非常合作：它们的社会性意味着觅食的蜜蜂为殖民地采集食物，而不是为了自己的需要，所以它们不会吃饱而停止工作。此外，在实验室里，熊蜂也可以很容易地被训练从几乎任何外观的人造花中收集食物。因此，我们将提出觅食大黄蜂与尖端计算机控制的人造花，模拟攻击的蟹蛛。我们将在这些“危险”的花朵上使用红外线屏障，打开柱塞诱捕装置，在蜜蜂着陆时诱捕它们。通过向蜜蜂提供一种颜色的“安全”奖励（含糖溶液）人造花，以及另一种颜色的奖励，但危险的花朵，这些花朵是螃蟹蜘蛛模型的港湾，我们将训练蜜蜂避开危险的花朵。我们将研究蜜蜂如何应对捕食尝试并学会避免捕食者取决于：i）神秘（隐蔽）捕食者的相对可见度，ii）遇到捕食尝试的数量和持续时间，iii）观察其他蜜蜂的捕食尝试。我们还将检验一个有趣的预测，即来自小蜂群的蜜蜂会避免从危险的花朵中觅食（因为它们的死亡会对殖民地造成损害），而来自大蜂群的蜜蜂所做的选择将取决于奖励和风险的价值（失去一个觅食者对一个更大、更老的蜂群的损害要小得多）。最后，我们将研究我们的实验结果如何与自然界中蜜蜂的捕食者回避行为进行比较。我们将观察蜜蜂从有许多捕食者（蟹蛛和圆网）的花朵中采集食物，并记录它们的行为。我们希望有捕食经验的蜜蜂在着陆前会更谨慎地飞行，花更多的时间研究花朵。