TITLE:
Further Studies of the Cap Pushing Response in Honey Bees (Apis mellifera)
AUTHORS:
Riley J. Wincheski, Kiri Li N. Stauch, Laura M. Grossner, Maya B. Zepeda, James W. Grice, Charles I. Abramson
KEYWORDS:
Apis mellifera, Cap Pushing Response, Cognition, Learning
JOURNAL NAME:
Natural Science,
Vol.16 No.5,
May
31,
2024
ABSTRACT: The Cap Pushing Response (CPR) is a free-flying technique used to study learning and memory in honey bees (Apis mellifera). The series of experiments outlined in this paper aimed to test whether honey bees exhibit the cognitive concept of “expectancy” utilizing the CPR in a weight differentiation paradigm. Five previous experiments in our laboratory have explored whether the concept of expectancy can account for honey bee performance and have all failed to support the cognitive interpretation. The first experiment examined if bees could differentiate between the two caps in the amount of force they used to push the cap and the distance the cap was pushed when the caps were presented one at a time. The second experiment explored cap weight preference by presenting bees with a choice between the two caps. The third and fourth experiments tested the bee’s ability to expect reward or punishment based on cap weight. Results revealed that bees were found to have a strong preference for the light cap and therefore were not able to expect reward or punishment based on cap weight. These experiments contribute to the debate on whether bees have “cognitive” representations and continue to support the behaviorist interpretation.