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How accurately can honeybees select their preferred temperature on a temperature gradient?
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Thermoreception
Warm-blooded animals, such as polar bears, maintain stable body temperatures and adapt to substantial geographic and seasonal temperature fluctuations. Thermal adaptation is supported by the function of sensory structures called thermoreceptors.
Honeybees (Apis mellifera) demonstrate remarkable precision in thermoreception. When placed on a temperature gradient, they typically select a preferred range of 34 ± 2 °C (93 ± 3.6 °F).1
Their ability to maintain this preference is highly accurate; when repeatedly placed at the warmer end of a gradient, individual bees are capable of returning to their average chosen temperature within an accuracy of ± 0.25 °C (± 0.45 °F). This sensitive thermoreception is supported by physiological evidence, including the presence of thermosensitive structures in their antennae and recorded temperature-induced changes in the electrical activity of their central nervous system.1