By using simple logic, bumblebees see which coloured flowers are the most popular and conclude that those of the same colour must also contain lots of energy-rich nectar.
"Learning where to find nectar by watching others seems fantastically complex for a tiny bee, but it's something that almost any animal could do, in the right circumstances," said Dr Elli Leadbeater at Queen Mary, University of London and the Zoological Society of London (ZSL).
Tests were carried out in wooden laboratory "flight arenas" stocked with artificial flowers. Bees were trained to know that sugar could be found on flowers where other foragers were present, according to the study published in the Current Biology journal.
The bees then watched through a screen as their companions chose a particular flower colour and ignored another.
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"Our study shows how bees use past associations to make decisions about when to copy others, but almost all other animals, including humans, are also capable of forming associations," Erika Dawson, researcher at Queen Mary, University of London added.
"We suggest that bees are using similar logic to a person who might get a headache and the next day, feel very ill. A week later, the headache is back, accompanied by a nasty rash.