High omega 6:3 ratio in the diet of young honey bees results in an earlier transition to foraging and shorter lifespan

Honey bees (Apis mellifera) are an important pollinator of crops essential to global food security and economic stability. Honey bees collect pollen from a diversity of flowering plants to ensure adequate nutrition that supports development and growth of brood and young bees. Pollen is also a source of fatty acids, including omega 6 and omega 3 essential fatty acids. High dietary omega-6:3 ratio impairs associative learning, lifespan, and brood rearing success. In this experiment, we test the hypotheses that omega 6:3 ratio affects the timing of transition from in hive tasks to foraging, together with the duration of time spent foraging and number of bouts. Bees raised on a high omega 6:3 ratio diet (ratio = 5) began exploring the hive entrance and embarking on bouts outside the nest 2.5 days earlier than bees raised on a balanced omega-6:3 ratio diet (ratio = 1). Furthermore, the number of days between first and last bouts was 1.5 days less, and the age at final bout 3.6 days earlier in bees raised on the high omega-6:3 ratio diet relative to those raised on the balanced diet. There was no difference in the duration of foraging bouts or total time spent foraging on average, however bees in the high omega 6:3 ratio diet embarked on more foraging bouts than bees raised on the balanced diet. These results suggest that hives exposed to a high omega 6:3 ratio diet for extended periods may be more susceptible to colony failure.