The Ability of Insects to Distinguish Number

Leppik, E. E.

doi:10.1086/281778

Cited by 39 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…Flowers with non-radiating patterns could still be used to locate rewards as they are still zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical), which has been shown to reduce discovery times when compared to asymmetrical flowers (West and Laverty 1998). They may also be well matched to the perceptual systems of bumblebees which primarily visit zygomorphic flower forms (Leppik 1953).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nectar discovery speeds and multimodal displays: assessing nectar search times in bees with radiating and non-radiating guides

2017

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Floral displays are often composed of areas of contrasting stimuli which flower visitors use as guides, increasing both foraging efficiency and the likelihood of pollen transfer. Many aspects of how these displays benefit foraging efficiency are still unexplored, particularly those surrounding multimodal signals and the spatial arrangement of the display components. We compare the nectar discovery times of forager bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) when presented with artificial flowers with unimodal or compound displays of visual and/or olfactory stimuli, positioned in either radiating or non-radiating arrangements. We found that the addition of individual display components from either modality reduces nectar discovery time but there was no time benefit to bimodal displays over unimodal displays or any benefit to radiating stimuli arrangements over non-radiating arrangements. However, preference tests revealed a time advantage to radiating unimodal visual patterns over non-radiating unimodal visual patterns when both types were displayed simultaneously. These results suggest that the benefits of multimodal stimuli arrangements to pollinators are unrelated to benefits in nectar discovery time. Our results also suggest that spatial patterns of scent can be used as nectar guides and can reduce nectar discovery times without the aid of visual stimuli.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nectar discovery speeds and multimodal displays: assessing nectar search times in bees with radiating and non-radiating guides

2017

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“…Desert ants ( Cataglyphis fortis ) use a “step counter” to measure traveled distances, enabling them to constantly update information about the distance and direction of the nest entrance (Wittlinger et al, 2006). Bees are often flower-constant, and numerical information could be used to identify nectar-bearing flowers, along with color, shape, and scent (Leppik, 1953; Gross et al, 2009). Visual information about number may also inform foraging decisions based on the number of bees already present on a flower.…”

Section: What Is the Advantage Of A “Sense Of Number”?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Inspired by the latest discoveries on the honeybees’ dance language (Von Frisch, 1951), he became interested in the question of whether, and how, insects could use numbers. Since many flowering plants which depend on insect pollination have a constant number of petals, he wanted to test whether pollinators had evolved a certain ability to discriminate blossoms based on the number of petals (Leppik, 1953). Despite the lack of controls and statistical tests, Leppik made some interesting observations.…”

Section: Number In Visual Discriminationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As central place foragers, they face more demanding navigational problems than animals without a nest to return to between foraging bouts. In this paper, we review the advances in our understanding of how and why insects use numerical information in mating strategies (Carazo et al, 2009, 2012), navigation (Chittka and Geiger, 1995; Reznikova and Ryabko, 1996; Wittlinger et al, 2006; Dacke and Srinivasan, 2008), foraging (Bar-Shai et al, 2011a,b), and visual decision-making (Leppik, 1953; Gross et al, 2009). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Numerical Cognition in Bees and Other Insects

Pahl¹,

Si²,

Zhang³

2013

Front. Psychol.

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The ability to perceive the number of objects has been known to exist in vertebrates for a few decades, but recent behavioral investigations have demonstrated that several invertebrate species can also be placed on the continuum of numerical abilities shared with birds, mammals, and reptiles. In this review article, we present the main experimental studies that have examined the ability of insects to use numerical information. These studies have made use of a wide range of methodologies, and for this reason it is striking that a common finding is the inability of the tested animals to discriminate numerical quantities greater than four. Furthermore, the finding that bees can not only transfer learnt numerical discrimination to novel objects, but also to novel numerosities, is strongly suggestive of a true, albeit limited, ability to count. Later in the review, we evaluate the available evidence to narrow down the possible mechanisms that the animals might be using to solve the number-based experimental tasks presented to them. We conclude by suggesting avenues of further research that take into account variables such as the animals’ age and experience, as well as complementary cognitive systems such as attention and the time sense.

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“…Brown ( 1935) and Eames ( 1961) have stated that flowers showing a reduced number of anthers in combination with the provision of nectar as an attraction utilize insects as pollinators which are more specialized in their flower-visiting habits. Leppick ( 1953) states that nectar secreted in a narrow tube becomes limited to only those more specialized longtongue insects (hymenopterans and lepidopterans). Grant ( 1950) lent further support to the adaptability of flowers to bee-pollination by pointing out that the flowers pollinated by hymenopterans and lepidopterans, for the most part, have not developed special adaptations for protection of the ovary since these insects do not injure the inner parts of the flower during feeding.…”

Section: Activities Of Primary Pollinating Insectsmentioning

confidence: 99%