Evening star., 1954-01-04
Bees May Communicate
By Talk and Scents
Research Has Advanced
To Study Of DioIects
By Thomos R. Henry

Bees may "talk" in four or 1--WE
languages.
The study Of bee language now has
advanced to study of bee dialects.
This Is announced in the annual re-
port of the Rockefeller Foundation
which is supporting in part the work of
DR.. Karl Won Frisch of the University
of Munich on the physiology and be-
havior Of bees.
Some years ago DR.. Won Frisch es-
tablished that bees. the complexity of
whose behavior long has been q source
of wonder actually had language with
which they could communicate with
each other. Without this their remark
able organization within the hive
would have been almost inexplicable.
This language, 1t was determined,
consisted primarily Of signs. like that
Of deaf and mute people. To these
signs were added odors Of different
classes to which the insects are ex-
tremely sensitive. DR.. Won FriSch
reached the point where he himself
could get some idea Of what the bees
were talking about and predict their
behavior from their conversation.
Different Languages.
Now, according to the Foundation re-
port, he has found that different varie-
ties have quite different languages. per-
haps differing as much as English and
French. One variety doesn't know what
the other is talking about. He has
gone one step further-bees. he has
found, probably talk with sounds that
are inaudible to the human ear. The
buzzing Of a bee, however, is not
means of communication within the
species.
There are indications" says the
report, that the language of bees is
not entirely sign language but that
tones, probably in the superSonic range,
play role in their communications.
"Physiologically it would be interest
ing to know how bees judge distance.
Their dances indicate with remarkable
exactnesS the distance between the
hive and the feeding place. How do
they adjust themselves to the changing
position of the sun when they use it
as compass? Apparently they have
an excellent memory for time, for they
seem to know that the sun at a certain
time will occupy certain place in the
heavens"
Dr. Won Frisch and his colleagues also
are making an intensive study of the
insects eyes, the physiology of the in
sectS' sense of smell, the role these play
in the constant search for food. and the
more general response mechaniSms to
their environment.
Special Scent for Workers.
Previous work by the German profess
sor and his colleagues has shown that
worker bees have a special scent gland.
under voluntary control. Only when a
good source of nectar has been found
is the fragrance, evidently quite power
full and attractive to other bees, re.
leased. The scent permeates the imme-
diate neighborhood. It is the bee Ian
guage equivalent of the word here"
Whenever a cruising worker gets a
Whit of this odor it knows there is a
plentiful supply of nectar close at hand
and starts close search for it.
Bees, DR.. Won Frisch has found. can
not distinguish red from black. This
probably is the reason that SO few
plants which depend on these insects
1Oi uISt4 IUuG1A1S tLlCA POlAC1 11oNC 4SA
blossoms. Nearly all blooming spe-
cies depend on birds and butterflies.
both of which are keenly sensitive to
red One striking exception is the Eu-
ropean poppy whose brilliant red bios
SONS carpet the landscape in late
spring But, the German eXperimenter
has discovered. these are not "red" to
the bee They have color which, since
it never can be experienced by the
human eye, cannot be described. The
poppy blossoms reflect great deal OF
the ultraviolet in sunlight. To this the
bee eye is extremely sensitive. The color
must be quite different from any of the
shades at the blue end of the spectrum
which are visible to man. The bee, fly
ing over a poppy field. sees carpet OF
flowers of a color probably vaguely like
violet.
A great deal of the work is being
carried out on an island in the North
Sea.