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Science: Studies show that beetles can master their skills
Focus, Monday 18 March, on the extraordinary powers of bumblebees. According to a study, these insects are able to transmit their skills. Update with journalist Nicolas Chateauneuf.
(France 2)
This Monday, March 18, focus on the extraordinary powers of beetles. According to a study, these insects are able to transmit their skills. Update with journalist Nicolas Chateauneuf.
Eyebrows hide many secrets. “What allows us to launch rockets is knowledge accumulated over centuries and passed down from generation to generation. We thought this was reserved for humans, then a few monkeys. Today, we find that bumblebees are also capable of it.”Introduced journalist Nicolas Chateauneuf on the 20 Heures set.
Able to transmit
A British team actually conducted the following experiment on three bumblebee colonies of several hundred individuals: the insects had to push a blue latch in a box to unlock the red latch. Push it and release the sweet reward. No one passed the exam. The researchers then trained nine beetles to unlock the reward. “And there, certain beetles, by closely observing those who succeed, have learned the proper gesture”Nicolas Chateauneuf reports.
Other insects may be able to learn and transmit, such as ants when they incubate aphids or bees in their hives. “The transmission of knowledge seems less and less the prerogative of human beings.”The journalist concluded.
Among our sources
Beetles learn behaviors too complex to innovate socially alone. Nature (2024)
