Comparison of published studies examining the nutritional content of worker jelly.

Proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates are reported as a mean percentage of the dry mass per sample (± standard deviation, where reported). Larval age (h) indicates the time post-egg hatching. This is typically a range because queens are given a range of time to lay eggs (see METHODS). In many cases, macronutrients per sample were simply reported as a mean. “Other” indicates the percentage of dry mass not accounted for by the three macronutrients (e.g., micronutrients, nondigestible material, etc.), and this is listed as a sample mean or a range depending on how results were reported in the study. “NR” indicates the information was not reported by the study. Note that these studies use a constellation of different methodologies that likely enhances the variation. (CSV)