Bumblebee social learning outcomes correlate with their flower-facing behaviour
Abstract Previous studies suggest that social learning in bumblebees can occur through second-order conditioning, with conspecifics functioning as first-order reinforcers. However, the behavioural mechanisms underlying bumblebees’ acquisition of socially learned associations remain largely unexplore...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Springer
2024-11-01
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| Series: | Animal Cognition |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-024-01918-x |
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| author | Yuyi Lu Zhenwei Zhuo Mark Roper Lars Chittka Cwyn Solvi Fei Peng Ying Zhou |
| author_facet | Yuyi Lu Zhenwei Zhuo Mark Roper Lars Chittka Cwyn Solvi Fei Peng Ying Zhou |
| author_sort | Yuyi Lu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Previous studies suggest that social learning in bumblebees can occur through second-order conditioning, with conspecifics functioning as first-order reinforcers. However, the behavioural mechanisms underlying bumblebees’ acquisition of socially learned associations remain largely unexplored. Investigating these mechanisms requires detailed quantification and analysis of the observation process. Here we designed a new 2D paradigm suitable for simple top-down high-speed video recording and analysed bumblebees’ observational learning process using a deep-learning-based pose-estimation framework. Two groups of bumblebees observed live conspecifics foraging from either blue or yellow flowers during a single foraging bout, and were subsequently tested for their socially learned colour preferences. Both groups successfully learned the colour indicated by the demonstrators and spent more time facing rewarding flowers—whether occupied by demonstrators or not—compared to non-rewarding flowers. While both groups showed a negative correlation between time spent facing non-rewarding flowers and learning outcomes, the observer bees in the blue group benefited from time spent facing occupied rewarding flowers, whereas the yellow group showed that time facing unoccupied rewarding flowers by the observer bees positively correlated with their learning outcomes. These results suggest that socially influenced colour preferences are shaped by the interplay of different types of observations rather than merely by observing a conspecific at a single colour. Together, these findings provide direct evidence of the dynamical viewing process of observer bees during social observation, opening up new opportunities for exploring the details of more complex social learning in bumblebees and other insects. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-df9177c643724df793fe7298aecaf43c |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1435-9456 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | Springer |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animal Cognition |
| spelling | doaj-art-df9177c643724df793fe7298aecaf43c2025-01-26T12:44:20ZengSpringerAnimal Cognition1435-94562024-11-0127111110.1007/s10071-024-01918-xBumblebee social learning outcomes correlate with their flower-facing behaviourYuyi Lu0Zhenwei Zhuo1Mark Roper2Lars Chittka3Cwyn Solvi4Fei Peng5Ying Zhou6Department of Neurology, Shenzhen Hospital, Southern Medical UniversityDepartment of Psychology, School of Public Health, Southern Medical UniversitySchool of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering, University of EssexDepartment of Psychology, School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of LondonGuangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Southern Medical UniversityDepartment of Psychology, School of Public Health, Southern Medical UniversityDepartment of Neurology, Shenzhen Hospital, Southern Medical UniversityAbstract Previous studies suggest that social learning in bumblebees can occur through second-order conditioning, with conspecifics functioning as first-order reinforcers. However, the behavioural mechanisms underlying bumblebees’ acquisition of socially learned associations remain largely unexplored. Investigating these mechanisms requires detailed quantification and analysis of the observation process. Here we designed a new 2D paradigm suitable for simple top-down high-speed video recording and analysed bumblebees’ observational learning process using a deep-learning-based pose-estimation framework. Two groups of bumblebees observed live conspecifics foraging from either blue or yellow flowers during a single foraging bout, and were subsequently tested for their socially learned colour preferences. Both groups successfully learned the colour indicated by the demonstrators and spent more time facing rewarding flowers—whether occupied by demonstrators or not—compared to non-rewarding flowers. While both groups showed a negative correlation between time spent facing non-rewarding flowers and learning outcomes, the observer bees in the blue group benefited from time spent facing occupied rewarding flowers, whereas the yellow group showed that time facing unoccupied rewarding flowers by the observer bees positively correlated with their learning outcomes. These results suggest that socially influenced colour preferences are shaped by the interplay of different types of observations rather than merely by observing a conspecific at a single colour. Together, these findings provide direct evidence of the dynamical viewing process of observer bees during social observation, opening up new opportunities for exploring the details of more complex social learning in bumblebees and other insects.https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-024-01918-xInsectsObservational learningPose-estimationSecond-order conditioning |
| spellingShingle | Yuyi Lu Zhenwei Zhuo Mark Roper Lars Chittka Cwyn Solvi Fei Peng Ying Zhou Bumblebee social learning outcomes correlate with their flower-facing behaviour Animal Cognition Insects Observational learning Pose-estimation Second-order conditioning |
| title | Bumblebee social learning outcomes correlate with their flower-facing behaviour |
| title_full | Bumblebee social learning outcomes correlate with their flower-facing behaviour |
| title_fullStr | Bumblebee social learning outcomes correlate with their flower-facing behaviour |
| title_full_unstemmed | Bumblebee social learning outcomes correlate with their flower-facing behaviour |
| title_short | Bumblebee social learning outcomes correlate with their flower-facing behaviour |
| title_sort | bumblebee social learning outcomes correlate with their flower facing behaviour |
| topic | Insects Observational learning Pose-estimation Second-order conditioning |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-024-01918-x |
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