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Summary
Comparison of dance angles of parathion-treated bees on vertical and on horizontal comb revealed that poison-induced deviations were minimal or absent on the horizontal plane. Marked deviations reappeared upon returning the comb to its vertical position. This suggests that parathion affects the peripheral receptors or the integrating centre involved in geomenotaxis. The behavioural effect of topical application of parathion to part or all of the gravity receptors was comparable to that of oral administration.
In a “fan” experiment, recruits interpreted the misinformation supplied by the dances of poisoned bees in a “correct” manner and were so misled. The stimulus strength of the wagtail dance appeared to be greater than that of the odour at the feeding sites in determining the flight direction of new recruits.
It is postulated that the thoracic ganglia of honeybees have evolved as secondary centres of integration, and assume control of the fine-structural patterns of the communication dance angle (i.e. angles between 0° and 45°, 45° and 90°, etc.), the brain and/or optic lobes being able to transpose the visual signals only to the cardinal compass points and their intersects.