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Related Concept Videos

Mate Choice01:20

Mate Choice

Mate choice—the decision about whom to mate with—is a type of natural selection, since animals must reproduce to pass down their genes. Mate choice is also called intersexual selection because the behavior occurs between the sexes.
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Frequency-dependent Selection

When the fitness of a trait is influenced by how common it is (i.e., its frequency) relative to different traits within a population, this is referred to as frequency-dependent selection. Frequency-dependent selection may occur between species or within a single species. This type of selection can either be positive—with more common phenotypes having higher fitness—or negative, with rarer phenotypes conferring increased fitness.Positive Frequency-Dependent SelectionIn positive...
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Flowers are the reproductive, seed-producing structures of angiosperms. Typically, flowers consist of sepals, petals, stamens, and carpels. Sepals and petals are the vegetative flower organs. Stamens and carpels are the reproductive organs.
What is Natural Selection?01:32

What is Natural Selection?

Natural selection is an evolutionary process in which individuals with survival-promoting traits reproduce at higher rates. These favorable traits become more common within a population or species. Naturally selected traits initially arise via random genetic mutations. In order for selection to occur, there must be variation within a population, the trait controlling the variation must be heritable, and there must be an evolutionary advantage for variation in the trait.The Theory of Natural...
Types of Selection01:46

Types of Selection

Natural selection influences the frequencies of particular alleles and phenotypes within populations in several different ways. Primarily, natural selection can be directional, stabilizing, or disruptive. Directional selection favors one extreme trait and shifts the population towards that phenotype while selecting against individuals displaying alternate traits. Stabilizing selection favors an intermediate trait with a narrow range of variation. Deviation from the optimal phenotype towards an...
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Although the genetic makeup of an organism plays a major role in determining the phenotype, there are also several environmental factors, such as temperature, oxygen availability, presence of mutagens, that can alter an organism’s phenotype.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 23, 2026

Radio Frequency Identification and Motion-sensitive Video Efficiently Automate Recording of Unrewarded Choice Behavior by Bumblebees
09:09

Radio Frequency Identification and Motion-sensitive Video Efficiently Automate Recording of Unrewarded Choice Behavior by Bumblebees

Published on: November 15, 2014

Background complexity affects colour preference in bumblebees.

Jessica Forrest1, James D Thomson

  • 1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Harbord St., Toronto, ON, Canada, M5S 3G5. jessica.forrest@utoronto.ca

Die Naturwissenschaften
|May 16, 2009
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Bees can see red flowers, but prefer blue ones against complex backgrounds. This suggests red flowers may deter bees, explaining their association with hummingbird pollination.

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Animal Behavior
  • Plant Biology

Background:

  • Hummingbird-pollinated flowers are often red, attributed to bees being unable to see red.
  • Laboratory studies challenge this, showing bees can detect red and have no innate color preference.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if laboratory conditions create artifacts in bee color preference studies.
  • To determine if background complexity influences bee color preference, particularly for red vs. blue flowers.

Main Methods:

  • Trained bumblebees (Bombus impatiens) to visit artificial red and blue flowers.
  • Tested bee color preference against uniform green backgrounds and realistic foliage backgrounds.

Main Results:

  • Bees showed indifference to flower color on uniform green backgrounds.
  • Bees strongly preferred blue flowers over red ones when presented against complex foliage backgrounds.
  • Preference for blue flowers increased significantly with background complexity.

Conclusions:

  • The "hummingbird syndrome" red coloration may reduce bee visitation, despite bees' ability to perceive red.
  • Context and background complexity are crucial factors in understanding pollinator color preferences.
  • Laboratory findings on bee color vision may not accurately reflect natural foraging conditions.