Bees are pretty amazing creatures. They have an interesting and structured social hierarchy, they produce honey and they pollinate our plants. Now a new study has revealed yet another incredible skill: they cooperate.
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00:03 Bees are pretty amazing creatures.
00:05 They have a structured social hierarchy.
00:07 They produce honey, and they pollinate our plants.
00:09 Now a new study has revealed yet another incredible skill.
00:12 They cooperate.
00:13 Researchers wanted to see how these worker insects stacked up
00:16 against the likes of much more intelligent creatures,
00:18 like dolphins, wolves, and chimps.
00:20 So they trained some bees to complete a task in exchange
00:23 for a sugary reward, finding that before coming back
00:25 to complete the task again, they would wait for their partner,
00:28 who they had trained with before.
00:30 As you can see here, despite identifying
00:32 where the sugary treat is, the bee
00:33 seems to loiter while its partner is
00:35 held back by experimenters.
00:36 When the other bee returns, however,
00:38 they go straight towards the block of Styrofoam
00:40 and get their reward.
00:41 In another test, with each bee in a separate clear tunnel,
00:44 you can see more clearly each bee
00:45 searching for their partner before attempting
00:47 to complete a similar task.
00:49 With the researchers writing as part of the study,
00:51 quote, "The study's findings challenge
00:53 conventional notions of insects, and the ability
00:55 to work together towards a common goal is present.
00:58 Even in the miniature brain of bumblebees."
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