Hygroscopic larval provisions of bees absorb soil water vapor and release liquefied nutrients

Larvae of most bee species consume individual provision masses composed of pollen mixed with nectar. For simple metabolic reasons, mature larvae should weigh less than their consumed provision. However, past research reported a remarkable result: mature larvae of three ground-nesting halictid bees weighed 60% more than their original provision masses. This surprising paradox could result from the expected hygroscopic nature of nectar. Sugar solutions absorb water vapor at rates defined by their osmolarity and ambient humidity. Our experiments tested this hypothesis, showing that larval provisions of a ground-nesting bee, Nomia melanderi, are strongly hygroscopic. They consequently absorbed substantial water vapor from this bee's preferred nesting soil. Mature larvae weighed 65% more than their original provision because hygroscopy had greatly augmented available dietary water. Liquid accumulating around isolated provisions was a sweet nutritious broth that included amino acids leached from the pollen. Hygroscopy was most intense during the egg and early larval stages. However, provision liquefaction (and possible drowning) was partly offset by rapid hydration of cached pollen, whose weight could double after absorbing free water. Larval provisions of two cavity-nesting Osmia species also readily absorbed water vapor from a soil atmosphere. However, at humidities measured within tunnels of their natural deadwood nesting substrates, they gained little weight via hygroscopy. Consequently, their mature larvae weighed less, not more, than the provision that they ate. These new insights explain some nesting traits shared by many ground-nesting bees, such as why females do not waterproof the earthen cell caps of their nest cells, or why many colletids cache liquid provisions. Progressive hygroscopy and resulting sugar dilution may also mediate succession of microbial mutualists and pathogens in provision masses of ground-nesting bees.

Automated summary

Ground-nesting bees like Nomia melanderi have larval provisions with strong hygroscopic properties, allowing them to absorb significant amounts of water vapor from their preferred nesting soil, resulting in mature larvae weighing more than their consumed provision masses. In contrast, cavity-nesting bees such as Osmia species only absorb minimal water vapor from their nesting substrates, causing their mature larvae to weigh less than the provision they consumed. This phenomenon explains various nesting behaviors in these bee species, as well as the impact of hygroscopy on the microbial composition of their provision masses.