On the tradeoff between the mean and the variance in foraging: Effect of spatial distribution and color preference

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dc.contributor.authorReal, Leslie
dc.contributor.authorOtt, James R.
dc.contributor.authorSilverfine, Eva
dc.date.accessioned2021-03-26T19:17:27Z
dc.date.available2021-03-26T19:17:27Z
dc.date.issued1982-12
dc.description.abstractAn enclosed colony of bumblebees (Bombus pennsylvanicus) was restricted to foraging on two artificial flower types. The means and variances were adjusted in the two flower types in order to detect risk sensitivity. Both the mean and the variance contributed to the bees' foraging decisions. A series of experiments was designed to construct the bees' indifference curve under a variety of ecological conditions. The indifference curve represents combinations of mean and variance in nectar reward for which bees showed no preference. In three of the four experiments there was a positive tradeoff between the mean and the variance, i.e., a relatively more variable flower type could be compensated for by increasing its expected reward. The quantitative nature of the tradeoff is shown to be sensitive to ecological parameters (e.g., spatial distribution of flowers) and independent behavioral parameters (e.g., intrinsic color preference).
dc.description.departmentAgricultural Sciences
dc.formatText
dc.format.extent7 pages
dc.format.medium1 file (.pdf)
dc.identifier.citationReal, L., Ott, J. R., & Silverfine, E. (1982). On the tradeoff between the mean and the variance in foraging: Effect of spatial distribution and color preference. Ecology, 63(6), pp. 1617-1623.
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.2307/1940101
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10877/13290
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherEcological Society of America
dc.rights.holder© 1982 by the Ecological Society of America
dc.sourceEcology, 1982, Vol. 63, No. 6, pp. 1617-1623.
dc.subjectbombus pennsylvanicus
dc.subjectbumblebees
dc.subjectgene flow
dc.subjectoptimal foraging
dc.subjectpollination
dc.subjectpollinator-plant interactions
dc.subjectrisk-sensitive foraging
dc.subjectrisk-sensitive foraging in bumblebees
dc.subjectuncertainty
dc.subjectvariable environments
dc.subjectAgricultural Sciences
dc.titleOn the tradeoff between the mean and the variance in foraging: Effect of spatial distribution and color preference
dc.typeArticle

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