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Science: study shows bumblebees can pass on their skills
Focus, Monday March 18, on the extraordinary powers of bumblebees. According to a study, these insects are capable of transmitting their skills. Update with journalist Nicolas Chateauneuf.
(France 2)
Focus, this Monday, March 18, on the extraordinary powers of bumblebees. According to a study, these insects are capable of transmitting their skills. Update with journalist Nicolas Chateauneuf.
Bumblebees hide many secrets. “What allows us to launch rockets is the knowledge accumulated over centuries and passed down from generation to generation. We thought that this was reserved for humans, then for a few monkeys. Today, we discover that the bumblebee is also capable of it”introduced journalist Nicolas Chateauneuf onto the 20 Heures set.
Able to transmit
A British team actually carried out the following experiment on three bumblebee colonies of several hundred individuals: the insects had to push a blue latch in a box, to unlock a red latch. By pushing it, a sweet reward was released. None passed the test. The researchers then trained nine bumblebees to unlock the reward. “And there, certain bumblebees, by closely observing those who succeed, learned the right gestures”reports Nicolas Chateauneuf.
Other insects might be able to learn and transmit, such as ants when they breed aphids, or bees in their hives. “The transmission of knowledge seems less and less the prerogative of humans”concludes the journalist.
Among Our Sources
Bumblebees socially learn behavior too complex to innovate alone. Nature (2024)
