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Insect vision models under scrutiny: what bumblebees (Bombus terrestris terrestris L.) can still tell us

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Abstract

Three contending models address the ability of bees to detect and discriminate colours: the colour opponent coding (COC) model, the colour hexagon (CH) model and the receptor noise-limited (RN) model, but few studies attempt to determine which model fits experimental data best. To assess whether the models provide an accurate description of bumblebee colour space, we trained bees to discriminate four colour pairs. The perceptual distance between the colours of each pair was similar according to the CH model but varied widely according to the COC and RN models. The time that bees required to select a flower and the proportion of correct choices differed between groups: decision times decreased as achromatic contrast increased, and the proportion of correct choices increased with achromatic contrast and perceptual distance, as predicted by the COC and RN models. These results suggest that both chromatic and achromatic contrasts affected the discriminability of colour pairs. Since flower colour affects the foraging choices of bees and foraging choices affect the reproductive success of plants, a better understanding of which model is more accurate under each circumstance is required to predict bee behaviour and the ecological implications of flower choice and colour.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Alejandro Trillo Iglesias and Guadalupe Corcobado for their assistance running the experiments, Klaus Lunau for his help in the calculation of spectral purities, four anonymous reviewers for comments, and Agrobío (Almería, Spain), for kindly providing bumblebee colonies. This research was supported by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación/FEDER (project CGL2010-16795 to M.A.R.G.) and a PhD studentship to F.J.T. from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), co-funded by the European Social Fund (JAE: JAEPre033).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that Agrobío has no claim on the scientific procedures of this study.

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  1. Department of Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas (EEZA-CSIC), Carretera de Sacramento, s/n, La Cañada de San Urbano, 04120, Almería, Spain

    Francismeire Jane Telles & Miguel A. Rodríguez-Gironés

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  1. Francismeire Jane Telles
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Telles, F.J., Rodríguez-Gironés, M.A. Insect vision models under scrutiny: what bumblebees (Bombus terrestris terrestris L.) can still tell us. Sci Nat 102, 4 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00114-014-1256-1

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