Dance Behaviour of Successful Foragers of the African Honeybee,Apis Mellifera Scutellata(Hymenoptera: Apidae)

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Abstract
Summary Vibration dance behaviour was monitored for foragers of the African honeybee in the Okavango River Delta, Botswana. Approximately 50% of successful foragers performed vibration dances within 5 min of entering the hive. Also, 30–40% of the foragers observed within a colony at any given time were vibrators. Since the vibration dance may enhance recruitment, vibrating foragers may play an important role in the regulation of foraging activity in African colonies. A new dance behaviour, the ‘buzz dance’, is described for African honeybees. While the function of the buzz dance was not determined, it was performed by successful foragers, frequently in conjunction with vibration and waggle dances. The buzz dance may therefore be associated with recruitment.