The authors studied how genotypic variability within colonies affects their defensive response. Different genetic types of bees were used in the experiments. The influence of the artificially generated within-colony genotypic diversity on the colony defence was investigated. Common stinging assays were performed. Time to the first sting was (TFS) and the number of stings made to the leather target within 2 minutes (NS) were recorded. The contribution of both defensive and gentle workers in the defensive response of the colonies being a physical mix of two such worker types was also studied (film analysis of the bees attacking the target). It was concluded that the within-colony, inter-worker genotypic interactions influenced the colony defense response due to the fact that the quantified value of the colony was usually not the additive composite of diverse worker groups of which the colony was composed. Moreover, the inter-worker interactions were dependent both on the quantified characteristics, which were different for TFS and NS, and on the types of the combined bees. The film analysis revealed that the contribution of defensive/gentle bees to the colony defense only partly reflect the defensive : gentle worker ratio in the colonies composed of such worker types. The contribution also depended on the types of mixed workers.
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