Form, function, and evolutionary origins of architectural symmetry in honey bee nests

Symmetry is pervasive across the tree of life,1,2,3,4,5 and organisms (including humans) build symmetrical structures for reproduction, locomotion, or aesthetics.6,7,8,9 Symmetry, however, does not necessarily span across levels of biological organization (e.g., symmetrical body plans often have asymmetric organs).10 If and how symmetry exists in structures built by social insect collectives, where there is no blueprint or central organizer, remains an open question.11 Here, we show that honey bees actively organize nest contents symmetrically on either side of their double-sided comb; 79% ± 7% of cell contents match their backside counterpart, creating a mirror image inside the nest. Experimentally restricting colonies to opposite sides of comb, we find that independent colonies will symmetrically mimic each other’s nest organization. We then examine the mechanism by which independent colonies can indirectly coordinate nest symmetry, showing that 100% of colonies (n = 6) perfectly co-localize their brood nest with a randomly positioned heat source, indicating that heat drives nest site initiation and early brood production. Nest symmetry also has adaptive benefits: two-sided nests grow more quickly, rear more brood, and have a more stable thermal environment than one-sided nests do. Finally, examining the evolutionary origins, we show that symmetry persists in three-dimensional (3D) nests of Apis mellifera and across multiple Apis species, coinciding with the onset of double-sided combs, which made it possible to symmetrically stockpile nest contents. This work shows that, similar to molecular mechanisms that create symmetry in multicellular organisms, there are behavioral processes that create functional symmetry in the collective organization of animal architecture. •Honey bees stockpile nest contents symmetrically, creating a mirror image•Independent colonies living on either side of a comb will mimic each other’s nests•Symmetry has adaptive benefits for colony growth and temperature stability•Nest symmetry is conserved across multiple species of Apis Smith et al. show that honey bees stockpile their nests symmetrically on either side of the double-sided comb, revealing architectural symmetry in the extended phenotype. This symmetry provides the colony with adaptive benefits, remains conserved in three-dimensional (3D) nest structures, and spans multiple species of Apis.