The sounds of honey bees and social wasps are always composed of a uniform frequency

Abstract

The sounds produced by the honeybee Apis mellifera (Apidae) and by the social wasps Paravespula germanica and Vespa orientalis (Hymenoptera, Vespinae) are of a uniform frequency which nevertheless differs in accordance with its purpose. In honey bees, the sound produced by ventilating workers has a frequency of 309 Hz, whereas that produced by the queen (queen piping) has a frequency of 450 Hz. In P. germanica, the sound frequency during ventilation is 194–231 Hz, whereas in V. orientalis, the ventilation and the awakening dance sounds (produced by the workers) and the hunger signal (sounded by the larvae) have a frequency of 118–140 Hz, while the threatening flight occurs at 221 Hz and the dance of workers facing the queen—at 600–637 Hz. All the produced sounds are synchronized to a uniform frequency over a given period, regardless of whether they are produced by a single insect or by an entire group. However, the frequency may change with time, probably owing to fatigue of the producer, and also the intensity of the sound may change, which results in a great variability of the sounds despite their uniform frequency.