TITLE

Can insects have culture? 

Puzzle-solving bumblebees show it’s possible

DESCRIPTION

(This article is both reading the transcript or listening to the 3-minute broadcast.)

“What do you have in common with a bumblebee – an affinity for flowers, maybe, or an appreciation of honey, perhaps? Well, now new research shows that we may share something deeper – a capacity for culture.”

This is a fascinating read or just a 3-minute listen to this NPR broadcast.  The conversation revolves around whether bumblebees can learn a task (a sort of puzzle box to get a drop of sweet  liquid), and whether the learning can be transmitted in the hive.  Well as it turns out, the bees can learn the task to get a reward, and then remarkably, the bees can act as a “tutor” for other bees to learn to get the reward.  The authors of the research consider this as a type of culture within the hive  system.  We often think of this type of transmitted learning in higher animals (primates, birds, and other mammals), but the researchers found that this capacity can be found in the insect world as well.

Take the time to listen, it’s only 4 minutes or just read the transcript.

SOURCE

All Things Considered (a 4-minute listen and available transcript to read)

NPR, March 7, 2023, by host  Ailsa Chang

LINK TO RESOURCE

https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1161627795

CLASS DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

•According to the broadcast, how was the experiment with the bees performed?  What were the results?

•According to the conversation (broadcast), what do the scientists mean by culture?

•What do these types of experiments teach us about the study of animal behavior that is a part of the field of Psychology?