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Updated: Jul 16, 2026

Radio Frequency Identification and Motion-sensitive Video Efficiently Automate Recording of Unrewarded Choice Behavior by Bumblebees
Published on: November 15, 2014
Noxious stimulation induces self-protective behavior in bumblebees
Matilda Gibbons1,2, Elisa Pasquini3, Amelia Kowalewska4,2
1Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Abstract:
It has been widely stated that insects do not show self-protective behavior toward noxiously-stimulated body parts, but this claim has never been empirically tested. Here, we tested whether an insect species displays a type of self-protective behavior: self-grooming a noxiously-stimulated site. We touched bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) on an antenna with a noxiously heated (65°C) probe and found that, in the first 2 min after this stimulus, bees groomed their touched antenna more than their untouched antenna, and more than bees that were touched with an unheated probe or not touched at all did. Our results present evidence that bumblebees display self-protective behavior. We discuss the potential neural mechanisms of this behavior and the implications for whether insects feel pain.
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