Male orchid bees craft unique perfumes from flowers – now we know why

Perfumes made by male orchid bees collecting scents from the flowers they visit are designed to encourage females to choose the orchid over another mate.

Male orchid bees collect raw materials from multiple sources, including the orchids they pollinate. These are used to concoct perfume mixtures that are stored in special hind leg pouches, although the purpose of the perfume is not known for certain.

To investigate, Jonas Henske of the Ruhr University Bochum in Germany and his colleagues Euglossa’s Dilemmaa species recently naturalized in South Florida.

First, researchers collected perfume from wild males. They then collected male bees that had just emerged from their pupae and added fragrance to some of the hind leg pouches.

Henske and his colleagues then placed one male bee in two flight cages already containing female bees, flowers and nesting material. One scented male, one scentless male, and up to 20 females were present in the cage at all times.

Direct observation of what happened among bees followed by genetic analysis of female bees and their larvae revealed that 26 out of 27 female bee chicks were fathered by fragrant males. became clear.

It turned out that one unscented male who had acquired a mate had somehow acquired the perfume in his pouch. increase.

Thomas Ertz, also a team member at the Ruhr University Bochum, said that complex odors produced by combining different molecules can convey more integrated information, such as how well a man is fit to be a father. said.

Elizabeth Tibbets of the University of Michigan said, “This study is exciting because it very clearly shows that male orchid bee perfume has a profound effect on female mating decisions.

“Over the years, many studies have suggested that Orchid Bee perfume is probably involved in female mate selection, but there is often an alternative explanation,” she says. “This study experimentally modifies men’s perfumes and shows that perfumes directly influence women’s mate choices. This is a very compelling experiment.”