ABSTRACT
This chapter investigates the mechanisms releasing necrophoric behavior and of the social organization of this behavior based on P. Kirk Visscher. Undertaker specialists are of particular interest in the study of division of labor in insect societies in part because they provide an example of extreme specialization on a single task by a very small subset of a colony. The seemingly purposeful behavior of the bees which effected necrophoresis suggested that they might be specialized to some extent in this task. To quantify the significance, or at least the magnitude, of necrophoric behavior within the honey bee colony, the dead bees that were carried out of the hive each day were collected using dead bee traps constructed according to N. E. Gary's design. To investigate the cues involved in releasing necrophoric behavior in honey bees, the chapter develops an assay of necrophoric activity which involved introducing samples of corpses or models with different treatments and comparing their removal times.
