Streetwise Bees Cut Corners to Find Food
Published:29 Dec.2021 Source:University of Exeter
The researchers interviewed 560 farmers around the world to find out what they know about their local pollinator diversity and their engagement in the issue. The results offer important insights for politics and science. Bumblebees waste no time enjoying the beauty of flowers -- instead learning the bare minimum about where to land and find food, new research shows.
A team led by the University of Exeter presented bees with artificial flowers -- circles of blue or yellow, or half and half, with sugar solution in the centre. The artificial flowers were positioned upright, and the flight pattern of bees meant they mostly saw the bottom half of the circles as they came into land.