Comparisons of the queen volatile compounds of instrumentally inseminated versus naturally mated honey bee (Apis mellifera) queens

Instrumental insemination is an attractive alternative to natural mating because specific genetic crosses can be made, thus producing colonies with desired traits. One factor that affects acceptance and retention of queens is the volatile compounds they produce. Our study compared volatile chemicals collected from virgin and mated honey bee queens that were either naturally mated (NM)or instrumentally inseminated (II). The volatile compounds collected from virgin queens differed from those that were mated and laying eggs. Virgin queens produced greater amounts of seven different compounds including 2-phenylethanol, n-octanal, and n-decanal compared with mated laying queens. Laying queens produced more E-â-ocimene than virgin queens. II and NM queens did not differ in the volatile compounds we detected or in their relative amounts. The overall similarities we found between II and NM queens indicate that the physiological changes that happen after mating and egg laying occur regardless of the mating method.