Cite this article: Beekman M, Oldroyd BP. 2018 Different bees, different needs: how nest-site requirements have shaped the decision-making processes in homeless honeybees (Apis spp.). Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 373: 20170010. http://dx.One contribution of 16 to a theme issue 'Collective movement ecology'. During reproductive swarming, a honeybee swarm needs to decide on a new nest site and then move to the chosen site collectively. Most studies of swarming and nest-site selection are based on one

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... ecies, Apis mellifera. Natural colonies of A. mellifera live in tree cavities. The quality of the cavity is critical to the survival of a swarm. Other honeybee species nest in the open, and have less strict nest-site requirements, such as the opennesting dwarf honeybee Apis florea. Apis florea builds a nest comprised of a single comb suspended from a twig. For a cavity-nesting species, there is only a limited number of potential nest sites that can be located by a swarm, because suitable sites are scarce. By contrast, for an open-nesting species, there is an abundance of equally suitable twigs. While the decision-making process of cavity-nesting bees is geared towards selecting the best site possible, open-nesting species need to coordinate collective movement towards areas with potential nest sites. Here, we argue that the nest-site selection processes of A. florea and A. mellifera have been shaped by each species' specific nest-site requirements. Both species use the same behavioural algorithm, tuned to allow each species to solve their species-specific problem. This article is part of the theme issue 'Collective movement ecology'.