A culture among bumblebees

Have you heard the latest buzz? Bumblebees have. According to a new study, trends can pass through a bumblebee colony as bees watch and copy one another’s behavior. This means the bees have a culture, which is a set of shared behaviors animals learn from one another. People once thought humans were the only species to develop cultures, but chimpanzees and some birds have also been found to have this ability. A research team from the UK set up puzzle boxes that offered a sweet-tasting reward when opened. “Demonstrator” bees were taught to open the boxes by pushing a red tab clockwise or a blue tab counterclockwise. Some bees saw the demonstrator bees open the boxes, while other bees were not allowed to watch before trying to open the boxes…

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The Week Junior US (Digital) - 1 Issue, Issue 158

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