Modeling bee movement shows how a perceptual masking effect can influence flower discovery

• Published in: PLoS computational biology Vol. 19; no. 3; p. e1010558
• Main Authors: Morán, Ana, Lihoreau, Mathieu, Pérez-Escudero, Alfonso, Gautrais, Jacques
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 01-03-2023; PLOS; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Analysis; Angular speed; Animal biology; Animals; Bees; Behavior; Biology and Life Sciences; Bumblebees; Density; Discovery and exploration; Ecology, environment; Flowers; Flowers & plants; Interactions; Invertebrate Zoology; Life Sciences; Masking; Movement; Perceptual Masking; Plant breeding; Plant reproduction; Plants; Plants (botany); Pollination; Pollination by insects; Pollinators; Probability; Random noise; Research and Analysis Methods; Social Sciences; Symbiosis; Velocity; France
• ISSN: 1553-7358; 1553-734X; 1553-7358
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010558

Understanding how pollinators move across space is key to understanding plant mating patterns. Bees are typically assumed to search for flowers randomly or using simple movement rules, so that the probability of discovering a flower should primarily depend on its distance to the nest. However, experimental work shows this is not always the case. Here, we explored the influence of flower size and density on their probability of being discovered by bees by developing a movement model of central place foraging bees, based on experimental data collected on bumblebees. Our model produces realistic bee trajectories by taking into account the autocorrelation of the bee's angular speed, the attraction to the nest (homing), and a gaussian noise. Simulations revealed a « masking effect » that reduces the detection of flowers close to another, with potential far reaching consequences on plant-pollinator interactions. At the plant level, flowers distant to the nest were more often discovered by bees in low density environments. At the bee colony level, foragers found more flowers when they were small and at medium densities. Our results indicate that the processes of search and discovery of resources are potentially more complex than usually assumed, and question the importance of resource distribution and abundance on bee foraging success and plant pollination.