Honey bees can rethink learned behaviours

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2026-05-13 09:01

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Honey bees can adapt to changing situations and relearn tasks, but distractions can interfere with the process in a "strikingly similar" way to how it does in humans, according to new French research. Scientists trained bees to associate smells with rewards, then reversed the rules to test how flexibly the insects could adjust. Bees exposed to visual distractions struggled more, especially when the task required remembering information across a short time gap. Researchers say the findings suggest bees use more complex “awareness-like” learning processes than previously understood, adding to ongoing debates about consciousness in animals.