title: Way-finding in displaced clock-shifted bees proves bees use a cognitive map.
abstract: Mammals navigate by means of a metric cognitive map. Insects, most notably bees and ants, are also impressive navigators. The question whether they, too, have a metric cognitive map is important to cognitive science and neuroscience. Experimentally captured and displaced bees often depart from the release site in the compass direction they were bent on before their capture, even though this no longer heads them toward their goal. When they discover their error, however, the bees set off more or less directly toward their goal. This ability to orient toward a goal from an arbitrary point in the familiar environment is evidence that they have an integrated metric map of the experienced environment. We report a test of an alternative hypothesis, which is that all the bees have in memory is a collection of snapshots that enable them to recognize different landmarks and, associated with each such snapshot, a sun-compass-referenced home vector derived from dead reckoning done before and after previous visits to the landmark. We show that a large shift in the sun-compass rapidly induced by general anesthesia does not alter the accuracy or speed of the homeward-oriented flight made after the bees discover the error in their initial postrelease flight. This result rules out the sun-referenced home-vector hypothesis, further strengthening the now extensive evidence for a metric cognitive map in bees.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anaesthesiology, School of Medicine, andSchool of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand; j.cheeseman@auckland.ac.nz galliste@ruccs.rutgers.edu.
authors.forename: James F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Cheeseman
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand;Allan Wilson Centre for Molecular Ecology and Evolution, Palmerston North, PN4442, New Zealand;
authors.forename: Craig D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Millar
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biology-Neurobiology, Free University of Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany;
authors.forename: Uwe
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Greggers
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biology-Neurobiology, Free University of Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany;
authors.forename: Konstantin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Lehmann
authors.affiliation: Department of Anaesthesiology, School of Medicine, andInstitute of Natural and Mathematical Sciences, Massey University, Auckland, 0745, New Zealand; and.
authors.forename: Matthew D M
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Pawley
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology and Center for Cognitive Science, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8020 j.cheeseman@auckland.ac.nz galliste@ruccs.rutgers.edu.
authors.forename: Charles R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Gallistel
authors.affiliation: Department of Anaesthesiology, School of Medicine, andSchool of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand;
authors.forename: Guy R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Warman
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biology-Neurobiology, Free University of Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany;
authors.forename: Randolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Menzel
mesh_terms: D000777:Anesthetics / Q000737:chemistry; D000818:Animals; D001499:Bayes Theorem; D001516:Bees / Q000502:physiology*; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D003071:Cognition; D003463:Cues; D005426:Flight, Animal; D006702:Homing Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D007530:Isoflurane / Q000737:chemistry; D008568:Memory; D016017:Odds Ratio; D009949:Orientation; D013037:Spatial Behavior; D013472:Sunlight
chemical_list: D000777:Anesthetics; D007530:Isoflurane
keywords: circadian; course-setting; navigation; shortcuts; terrain map