Learning in honeybees is analyzed in a wide variety of experiments like those designed for the study of learning in vertebrates. The experiments are done in quasi-natural settings with free-flying bees, as well as with restrained subjects. The conditioned stimuli are color, odor, substrate vibration, and change in magnetic field; the responses measured are activity in the vicinity of the feeding place, landing at a feeding place, entering a small hole that gives access to food, and reflex extension of the proboscis. The principle concerns at present are with the learning mechanisms involved in foraging. Apart from its contribution to our understanding of the evolution of learning, this work with honeybees, which are animals of great agricultural importance, may have practical consequences for honey-production and for the pollination of crops.
