Using RFID technology, a group of researchers decided to test the homing abilities of bees to return to the hive, as reported in the journal PLoS ONE.
Using RFID technology, a group of researchers decided to test the "homing" abilities of bees to return to the hive, the journal reports; PLoS ONE.
Each bee was equipped with an RFID tag with a unique 64-bit number, allowing scientists to study the behavior of each bee involved in the experiment in more detail.
"We decided to use RFID tags to record the incoming and outgoing flights of many individual insects simultaneously over several days. The small size of the RFID tags ensured that the bees behaved as usual without any limitations on flight distance," says the research team.
The bees were released in four different directions at distances of up to 13 kilometers. Two RFID receivers attached to the hive recorded each entry and exit of the chipped bees, recording the ID number, time, and direction of movement.
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