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Times Life
Times Life
Lifestyle
Aishwarya Kapoor

Bumblebee Social Learning: How Insects Solved a Puzzle and Taught Other Bees Without Any Instruction

What the experiment actually tested

A bumblebee given a two-step puzzle box, one that required rotating a red tab before a second disc could be pushed aside to reach a sugar reward, had no prior experience with either step. Given enough time alone, most bees failed. Bees that watched a trained demonstrator complete the sequence cracked it themselves. Then other bees watched them, and the solution spread.

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