摘要 : The tergal gland secretions in queens, workers and pseudoqueens of Apis mellifera capensis and A. m. scutellata are composed of long-chain fatty acids, long-chain esters and a linear series of unsaturated hydrocarbons. The cuticul... 展开 The tergal gland secretions in queens, workers and pseudoqueens of Apis mellifera capensis and A. m. scutellata are composed of long-chain fatty acids, long-chain esters and a linear series of unsaturated hydrocarbons. The cuticular extracts consistof a linear series (C23-C31) of saturated hydrocarbons and are identical for both A. m. capensis and A. m. scutellata queens and workers. The major compound in the tergal gland secretion for all test groups is (Z)-9-octadecenoic acid. Virgin queens aredistinguishable from mated queens and workers in that they secrete a series of long-chain esters, the predominant ester being decyl decanoate. A. m. capensis workers differed significantly from A. m. capensis mated queens, as did pseudo-queens, in theirtergal gland secretion profiles. Significant inter-racial differences were found between the tergal gland secretions of mated queens and workers from the 2 contiguous African races, but not between the virgin queens. Consequently, mated queens and workers of these 2 African races can be separated on their tergal gland secretion profiles. 收起