ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

Home → Science

Bumblebee culture? They show remarkable learning through social cues

Bumblebees watch and learn from more experienced peers.

Fermin KoopbyFermin Koop
March 9, 2023
in Animals, Environment, News, Science
A A
Edited and reviewed by Zoe Gordon
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterSubmit to Reddit

Not only can these small insects learn how to solve puzzles from one another, but they can also learn from one another. This suggests that some invertebrates have the capacity to form what we humans call “culture” — passing down behaviors from one generation to the next, the researchers said.

Image credit: The researchers.

Bumblebees are usually classified into two genera: Bombus, the nest-building bumblebees, and Psithyrus, the parasitic bumblebees. They can be found all over the world but are more common in temperate climates. Many studies have recently warned about their populations being at risk from the extensive use of pesticides in agriculture. Perhaps we should be even more concerned for them given their remarkable cognitive abilities.

Researchers from Queen Mary University in London trained a group of bumblebees to open a puzzle box containing a sugar reward. These bees then passed on the acquired knowledge to others in their colonies. This suggests that social learning has a much greater influence on the behavior of bumblebees than previously imagined, the researchers said.

“Bumblebees – and, indeed, invertebrates in general – aren’t known to show culture-like phenomena in the wild. However, in our experiments, we saw the spread and maintenance of a behavioral “trend” in groups of bumblebees – similar to what has been seen in primates and birds,” Alice Bridges, the study lead author, said in a statement.

Puzzles and bumblebees

For their study, the researchers designed a two-option puzzle box that would be opened by pushing a red tab clockwise or a blue tab counter-clockwise – revealing a 50% sucrose solution reward. They trained “demonstrator” bees to use either the red or the blue tabs while letting “observer” bees watch the whole thing and then act.

When it was their turn to tackle the puzzle, the observer bees overwhelmingly and repeatedly chose to use the same method that they had seen, even after discovering the alternative option. The preference for the taught option was sustained by whole colonies of bees, the study showed, with an average of 98.6% of puzzles done with the taught method.

The researchers also tested how observer bees would perform without a demonstrator. While some bees were able to open puzzle boxes, they did fewer times than those who benefited from seeing another bee do it first. Observer bees with a demonstrator could open 28 puzzle boxes a day, while those without one could only open one a day.

As seen with bees, a growing number of studies in recent decades have shown that animals like chimps and birds show evidence of culture, meaning they can learn from each other. This can range from using a tool to access food to navigating a migratory route. Behaviors are passed down from generation to generation, just like we do as humans.

RelatedPosts

Bees can feel optimism, possibly other ’emotion-like states’ as well, study finds
These heavy metal bees head-bang flowers 350 time/second to release pollen
In Canada bees are making hives out of plastic
Bees can not only count, and understand the concept of zero — they also grasp the concept of numerical symbols

“We tend to overlook the ‘alien civilizations’ formed by bees because they are small-bodied and their societies and architectural constructions seem governed by instinct,” Lars Chittka, a study co-author, said in a media statement. “Our research shows, however, that new innovations can spread like social media memes through insect colonies.”

This isn’t the first study to cast the intelligence of invertebrates in a new light. Several previous studies (some of them also by Chittka) found that bees have a remarkably rich intelligence and exhibit strikingly social behaviors — all the more reason to ensure they have the protection they need.

The study was published in the journal PLOS Biology.

Tags: bees

ShareTweetShare
Fermin Koop

Fermin Koop

Fermin Koop is a reporter from Buenos Aires, Argentina. He holds an MSc from Reading University (UK) on Environment and Development and is specialized in environment and climate change news.

Related Posts

Biology

Scientists Create a ‘Power Bar’ for Bees to Replace Pollen and Keep Colonies Alive Without Flowers

byTudor Tarita
2 months ago
Animals

How on Earth did this small bee get on an island in French Polynesia?

byMihai Andrei
1 year ago
A male leafcutter bee of the genus Megachile. Image credits: Andrew Murray.
Animals

Bees may have originated from an ancient supercontinent

byFermin Koop
2 years ago
Image credit: Pixabay.
Animals

Bumblebees’ remarkable sense of smell guides them safely home

byFermin Koop
2 years ago

Recent news

Menstrual Cups Passed a Brutal Space Test. They Could Finally Fix a Major Problem for Many Astronauts

July 2, 2025

The Fungus Behind the Pharaoh’s Curse Might Help Cure Leukemia

July 2, 2025

The Woman of Margaux: Reconstructing the Face and Life of a 10,500-Year-Old Hunter-Gatherer

July 2, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Editorial Policy
  • Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
  • How we review products
  • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Science News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Space
  • Future
  • Features
    • Natural Sciences
    • Physics
      • Matter and Energy
      • Quantum Mechanics
      • Thermodynamics
    • Chemistry
      • Periodic Table
      • Applied Chemistry
      • Materials
      • Physical Chemistry
    • Biology
      • Anatomy
      • Biochemistry
      • Ecology
      • Genetics
      • Microbiology
      • Plants and Fungi
    • Geology and Paleontology
      • Planet Earth
      • Earth Dynamics
      • Rocks and Minerals
      • Volcanoes
      • Dinosaurs
      • Fossils
    • Animals
      • Mammals
      • Birds
      • Fish
      • Amphibians
      • Reptiles
      • Invertebrates
      • Pets
      • Conservation
      • Animal facts
    • Climate and Weather
      • Climate change
      • Weather and atmosphere
    • Health
      • Drugs
      • Diseases and Conditions
      • Human Body
      • Mind and Brain
      • Food and Nutrition
      • Wellness
    • History and Humanities
      • Anthropology
      • Archaeology
      • History
      • Economics
      • People
      • Sociology
    • Space & Astronomy
      • The Solar System
      • Sun
      • The Moon
      • Planets
      • Asteroids, meteors & comets
      • Astronomy
      • Astrophysics
      • Cosmology
      • Exoplanets & Alien Life
      • Spaceflight and Exploration
    • Technology
      • Computer Science & IT
      • Engineering
      • Inventions
      • Sustainability
      • Renewable Energy
      • Green Living
    • Culture
    • Resources
  • Videos
  • Reviews
  • About Us
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Editorial policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.