The secret dance of honeybees

Chapter 1

The discovery of the code

Chapter 2

The mechanics of the waggle

Chapter 3

The sensory hive experience

Chapter 4

Beyond food and democratic decisions

Ch 4 · Beyond food and democratic decisions
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misslily Searching for a new home

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Quiz

What physical action does a scout bee use to signal a rival dancer to stop?

Jul 29

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Quiz

How does a scout bee show that a potential nesting site is of high quality?

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Waggle and Seek
BETA

misslily Decode the honeybee's waggle dance to discover how they share directions to flowers.

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misslily The dance debate

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The dance debate

misslily Scout bees hold a democratic debate by comparing the intensity of their dances.

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Quiz

Which biologist wrote the book 'Honeybee Democracy' about swarm decision-making?

Jul 29

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Quiz

How do scout bees advertise different potential nesting sites to the swarm?

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misslily The Honeybee Waggle Dance

Just read my gravity, I'll show you where the sun shines, follow my angle in the dark.

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misslily The headbutt veto

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The headbutt veto

misslily Bees can physically stop other bees from dancing to help the hive reach a consensus.

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Quiz

What major life event triggers a honeybee swarm to look for a new home?

Jul 29

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Quiz

Where does the swarm temporarily wait while scouts look for a new home?

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Fun Fact

Hive democracy: Cornell biologist Thomas Seeley proved that bee swarms make decisions that match or exceed human group decision-making efficiency.

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misslily Quorum sensing for takeoff

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Quiz

What is the term for reaching a decision once a threshold of bees agree?

Jul 29

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Quiz

Roughly how many scout bees must agree on a site before the swarm takes off?

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Gossip

Is headbutting a fair way to debate?

Jul 29