Bumblebees can solve puzzles by following other bees, study finds


A new study has found that bumblebees can solve puzzles by watching their peers. "These creatures are really quite incredible. They're really, really good at learning despite having these tiny, tiny brains," said Alice Bridges, a behavioral ecologist at Anglia Ruskin University.
In order to test this, researchers set up a box puzzle that could be solved via two methods and trained "demonstrator" bees to solve the puzzle in different ways, BBC reports. Designated "observer" bees then watched the "demonstrator" bees solve the puzzle. The results showed that, 98 percent of the time, the "observer" bee solved the puzzle using the same method as the bee it watched, even if the observer had discovered the second method. Bees that followed a demonstrator were also able to solve more puzzles than those that didn't.
Scientists have also posited that bees may have a culture like humans, with learned behaviors passed around in the bee colony, NPR writes. "In our experiments, we saw the spread and maintenance of a behavioral 'trend' in groups of bumblebees — similar to what has been seen in primates and birds," said Bridges. If that knowledge among animals lasts, "we might be prepared to call it a tradition," explained Andy Whiten, a cognitive ethologist at the University of St. Andrews. "And culture is made up of multiple traditions."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"All we have discovered about animal culture means that human culture, once thought unique," remarked Whiten, "did not emerge 'out of the blue' but has obviously built on deep evolutionary foundations."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Devika Rao has worked as a staff writer at The Week since 2022, covering science, the environment, climate and business. She previously worked as a policy associate for a nonprofit organization advocating for environmental action from a business perspective.
-
5 inexcusably hilarious cartoons about Ghislaine Maxwell angling for a pardon
Cartoons Artists take on the circle of life, Ghislaine's Island, and more
-
Ozzy Osbourne obituary: heavy metal wildman and lovable reality TV dad
In the Spotlight For Osbourne, metal was 'not the music of hell but rather the music of Earth, not a fantasy but a survival guide'
-
Codeword: August 2, 2025
The Week's daily codeword puzzle
-
'Thriving' ecosystem found 30,000 feet undersea
Speed Read Researchers discovered communities of creatures living in frigid, pitch-black waters under high pressure
-
What would happen to Earth if humans went extinct?
The Explainer Human extinction could potentially give rise to new species and climates
-
Bad news, alpha males. You likely don't actually exist.
Under the radar Most primate communities are egalitarian
-
Scientists and Peter Jackson attempt to bring back an extinct bird — kind of
In the Spotlight Colossal Biosciences was the company behind the 'resurrected' dire wolves
-
Scientists want to regrow human limbs. Salamanders could lead the way.
Under the radar Humans may already have the genetic mechanism necessary
-
New York plans first nuclear plant in 36 years
Speed Read The plant, to be constructed somewhere in upstate New York, will produce enough energy to power a million homes
-
A potentially mutating bat virus has some scientists worried about the next pandemic
Under the Radar One subgroup of bat merbecovirus has scientists concerned
-
Dehorning rhinos sharply cuts poaching, study finds
Speed Read The painless procedure may be an effective way to reduce the widespread poaching of rhinoceroses