Social context alters behavioral interactions in bumblebees

Bumblebees are eusocial insects that rely on successful cooperation to carry out collective tasks which keep the colony running smoothly. Individual bumblebees must be able to correctly interpret and respond to social cues within a busy hive in order to properly fulfill their role. In this study, we investigate how social context alters behavioral interactions among bumblebee (Bombus impatiens) workers by probing the behavior of differently aged bees either alone or paired with another bee. We track the posture of bees over time using a deep learning algorithm and quantify variation in social behavior by clustering the dynamics of individual body parts in addition to relative positioning, bee-to-bee antennation, and locomotion. We find a number of interesting differences between bees of different ages and castes, including variation in the responsiveness of individual bees to novel social partners.