Bees actively adjust flower choice based on color and distance: Updating 'flower constancy' beyond Darwin's theory

Date:

April 3, 2025

Source:

University of Tsukuba

Summary:

Since Darwin's time, the phenomenon known as flower constancy -- i.e., where insects consistently visit the same flower type even when many others are also present -- has been understood as a passive behavior to reduce the effort of remembering different flower types. However, researchers have now shown via experimentation with bees that this behavior is an active strategy in which bees balance the time required for memory retrieval and moving between flowers, thereby realizing efficient foraging.

Since Darwin's time, the phenomenon known as flower constancy -- i.e., where insects consistently visit the same flower type even when many others are also present -- has been understood as a passive behavior to reduce the effort of remembering different flower types. However, researchers at University of Tsukuba have shown via experimentation with bees that this behavior is an active strategy in which bees balance the time required for memory retrieval and moving between flowers, thereby realizing efficient foraging.

Pollinating insects such as bumble bees often repeatedly visit the same type of flower, even when a variety of flowers bloom nearby.

This behavior is known as "flower constancy." Darwin speculated that flower constancy was a passive response to avoid effort involved in remembering the different flower characteristics.

However, this study reveals that this theory is incomplete, since it focuses too heavily on "memory constraints." Instead, researchers found that flower constancy actually results from an optimal strategy that dynamically adjusts to balance the time required to recall different flower types with the time required to move between flowers.

In this study, researchers predicted how pollinator behavior changes in response to the levels of spatial mixture of plant species present.

When different plant species are highly mixed, focusing on one type of flower increases the time spent moving between them, causing pollinators to skip over other species.

In this situation, pollinators should maintain a low level of flower constancy to forage optimally, even if it requires additional effort to recall flower types.

Moreover, when species have similar flower colors or shapes, pollinators should further lower their flower constancy, since switching between species then requires minimal effort.

By contrast, when plant species are clustered in groups, focusing on a single flower type simultaneously reduces the costs of both memory retrieval and travel between flowers.

Consequently, in such environments a higher degree of flower constancy is optimal.

To test these predictions, researchers used two types of artificial flowers and examined how bumble bees' flower constancy changed with the levels of spatial mixture and color difference.

As predicted, when the two flower types were more mixed and their flower colors were more similar, bees significantly decreased flower constancy.

By contrast, when the same flower types were present in clusters, bees maintained a high level of constancy regardless of flower color difference.

These findings challenge the widely accepted theory of pollinator flower constancy that has persisted for 150 years.

They provide an important update that improves the comprehensiveness of our understanding of pollinator flower constancy in natural environments.

This study was supported by Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Grant/Award Number: 19K06834.

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A step toward plant-based gelatin

 

Replacing gelatin with plant-based alternatives reduces animal-based content in food, drugs, and packaging

Date:

April 1, 2025

Source:

American Institute of Physics

Summary:

Researchers present gum tragacanth as a plant-based alternative to gelatin for creating edible films. The team developed films containing different concentrations of gelatin and gum tragacanth and monitored their survivability in water and saline solutions. They found the optimal combination of gum tragacanth and gelatin for maintaining the gelatin's gel-like behavior was a 3-to-1 ratio of the two, respectively. However, gum tragacanth's inclusion leads to a more porous film, making it prone to penetration by water or saline solutions. Though gum tragacanth cannot replace gelatin completely just yet, even a partial replacement is a step forward.

With increased awareness about food sources and their environmental impacts, replacing animal-derived products in food and drugs is a significant research area. One common -- but often overlooked -- animal protein is gelatin, found everywhere from candy to plastic-free packaging.

In Physics of Fluids, by AIP Publishing, researchers from the University of Ottawa present gum tragacanth as a plant-based alternative to gelatin for creating edible films.

"Gelatin has unique properties and its use is versatile," said author Ezgi Pulatsu.

"To fully replace gelatin, we must replicate its microstructure and understand its function in different applications."

Gelatin's gel-like structure and its transparency are just two of its qualities that a plant-based alternative must replicate.

Gum tragacanth, a byproduct of the sap in certain legume plants, is promising in both of these characteristics.

To test just how promising it is, Pulatsu's team developed films containing different concentrations of gelatin and gum tragacanth -- some constructed with alternating layers, others a mixture of the two -- and monitored their survivability in water and saline solutions.

They found the optimal combination of gum tragacanth and gelatin for maintaining the gelatin's gel-like behavior was a 3-to-1 ratio of the two, respectively.

However, gum tragacanth's inclusion leads to a more porous film, making it prone to penetration by water or saline solutions.

Though gum tragacanth cannot replace gelatin completely just yet, the researchers continue their work on developing a fully plant-based alternative.

Pulatsu said one path forward is to improve gum tragacanth's suitability on its own through various chemical and structural modifications that can increase its mechanical and barrier properties, but noted that even a partial replacement is a step forward.

"Partial replacement of gelatin will reduce animal-based product use," Pulatsu said.

"Our efforts in the full replacement of gelatin are ongoing."

Specific applications will each have their own challenges to consider.

For example, replacing gelatin in candy requires special attention to gum tragacanth's impacts on sweetness, texture, and transparency, while brittleness and flexibility are key factors for food packaging.

"We are very excited to see the outcomes and share them with the community," Pulatsu said.

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Plant doctor: An AI system that watches over urban trees without touching a leaf

 

Researchers combine machine vision and segmentation techniques into a tool to monitor urban plant health at the individual leaf level

Date:

April 2, 2025

Source:

Waseda University

Summary:

Monitoring urban plant health traditionally requires extensive manual labor and botanical expertise, creating challenges for cities facing expanding green spaces, higher population densities, and increasing threats to plants. Now, researchers have developed 'Plant Doctor,' an artificial intelligence-based tool that could revolutionize plant health monitoring. The proposed system can track individual leaves in urban video footage and precisely quantify the damage from pests and diseases, enabling scalable, non-invasive urban plant management.

Urban trees and plants do more than just beautify city landscapes. They purify the air, reduce urban heat islands, provide recreational spaces, and even boost property values. As essential components of sustainable urban ecosystems, plants silently contribute to our well-being. However, urban trees face many threats, including pests, diseases, and climate change, making it essential to keep their health in check.

Urban greenery monitoring has traditionally been a very labor-intensive process, requiring botanical expertise and considerable resources. With cities expanding worldwide and urban environments becoming more complex, keeping track of plant health has also become more difficult. Could artificial intelligence (AI) hold the key to addressing this challenge?

In a recent study, a joint research team led by Professor Umezu's Laboratory from the Department of Life Science and Medical Bioscience at Waseda University and Professor Shiojiri's Laboratory from the Faculty of Agriculture at Ryukoku University developed an innovative AI-driven solution for monitoring plant health. Their paper was published online in the journal Measurement on February 22, 2025, and will be published in Volume 249, on May 31, 2025. This study introduces 'Plant Doctor,' a hybrid AI system that automatically diagnoses urban tree health through video footage captured by ordinary cameras. "Machine vision techniques such as segmentation have great applications in the medical field. We wanted to extrapolate this technology to other areas, such as plant health," says first author Marques, explaining their motivation.

Plant Doctor combines two cutting-edge machine vision algorithms -- YOLOv8 and DeepSORT -- to identify and track individual leaves across video frames. The goal of these algorithms is to ensure that only the best images for each leaf are selected for further processing. Then, a third algorithm, called DeepLabV3Plus, performs detailed image segmentation to precisely quantify leaf damage. The proposed system can automatically detect diseased areas on individual leaves, such as spots caused by bacteria, pests, and fungi.

One of the most attractive aspects of this approach is its scalability and cost efficiency. The system can process video footage collected by cameras mounted not only on drones but also on city maintenance vehicles like garbage trucks, turning routine services into opportunities to gather data without investing substantial resources. Moreover, by using images rather than actual branches and leaves, Plant Doctor minimizes stress on city plants. "We have provided a tool for botanical experts to assess plant health in one solution without the need to gather samples and damage the plants in the process," remarks Marques. The research team validated the proposed system using footage of urban plants in Tokyo, obtaining favorable results and remarkably accurate leaf health diagnoses across various urban flora.

By combining plant health data with accurate location information, Plant Doctor enables both a micro-level analysis of individual plants and macro-level insights into disease patterns across urban areas. Worth noting, beyond urban applications, Plant Doctor could also be adapted for agricultural use, helping farmers monitor crop health and identify diseases before they spread.

Overall, the proposed technology represents a significant step toward more sustainable urban and rural plant health monitoring, allowing botanical experts to focus more on strategic interventions rather than routine monitoring.

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Research shows reduced neuroactivity during sleep is associated with brain atrophy in areas vulnerable to Alzheimer's disease

Date:

March 31, 2025

Source:

American Academy of Sleep Medicine

Summary:

New research reveals that lower proportions of specific sleep stages are associated with reduced brain volume in regions vulnerable to the development of Alzheimer's disease over time.

New research reveals that lower proportions of specific sleep stages are associated with reduced brain volume in regions vulnerable to the development of Alzheimer's disease over time.

Results show that individuals with lower proportions of time spent in slow wave sleep and rapid eye movement sleep had smaller volumes in critical brain regions, particularly the inferior parietal region, which is known to undergo early structural changes in Alzheimer's disease.

The results were adjusted for potential confounders including demographic characteristics, smoking history, alcohol use, hypertension, and coronary heart disease.

"Our findings provide preliminary evidence that reduced neuroactivity during sleep may contribute to brain atrophy, thereby potentially increasing the risk of Alzheimer's disease," said lead author Gawon Cho, who has a doctorate in public health and is a postdoctoral associate at Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut.

"These results are particularly significant because they help characterize how sleep deficiency, a prevalent disturbance among middle-aged and older adults, may relate to Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis and cognitive impairment."

The study was published March 31 as an accepted paper in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, the official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

According to the Alzheimer's Association, Alzheimer's disease is a degenerative brain disease and the most common cause of dementia.

An estimated 6.7 million Americans aged 65 and older are living with Alzheimer's disease, and this number is projected to double by 2060, pending medical developments to prevent, slow or cure the disease.

The study involved an analysis of data from 270 participants who had a median age of 61 years.

Fifty-three percent were female, and all participants were white.

Individuals were excluded from the analysis if they previously had a stroke or probable dementia or other significant brain pathology.

The research utilized polysomnography to assess baseline sleep architecture.

Advanced brain imaging techniques were used to measure brain volumes 13 to 17 years later.

According to the authors, the study demonstrates an important association between sleep and long-term brain health, and it highlights potential opportunities to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease.

"Sleep architecture may be a modifiable risk factor for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, posing the opportunity to explore interventions to reduce risk or delay Alzheimer's onset," said Cho.

The researchers emphasized that further investigation is needed to fully understand the causal relationships between sleep architecture and Alzheimer's disease progression.

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Using cover plants to remove pollutants from arable soil

Ways to improve soil health in agriculture

Date:

March 25, 2025

Source:

Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ

Summary:

Nitrate, pesticides, metals, plastic -- agricultural soils often contain pollutants. But are there sustainable and climate-friendly ways to restore and promote soil health in agricultural land? Yes, says a research team. Specific plant species could be used as cover plants for phytoremediation, i.e. to relief agricultural land from adverse pollutant impacts. In their article, the researchers summarize the results of more than 100 scientific studies and present which plants, according to current knowledge, are suitable for removing pollutants from agricultural soils or trapping them in their root systems.

Farmers often grow so-called cover plants between main crops. They are used for purposes such as for animal feeds or remain on the field as green manure. In this way, they supply the soil with nutrients before the next planting. However, cover plants also protect against erosion, stabilise the soil's water, nutrient and carbon balance, regulate soil temperature, promote humus formation, sequester carbon dioxide and increase biodiversity above and below ground. "Cover plants are actually a kind of miracle tool in agriculture," says Prof Marie Muehe, head of the Plant Biogeochemistry working group at the UFZ and senior author of the publication. However, their potential for removing soil contaminants has yet to be recognised.

Using plants to remediate contaminants in the soil is nothing new. For example, contaminated soil on industrial sites is already being remediated in this way. But agriculture could also benefit from this method, says Marie Muehe: "The use of selected cover plants for phytoremediation is a natural, climate-neutral way to improve and maintain soil health. We should also apply this in the interests of sustainable agriculture."

But which plants are suitable for phytoremediation in agriculture? And which pollutants could be managed with which plants? The UFZ team investigated these questions and analysed the current status of research. "For example, we researched whether there are already studies that indicate which of the frequently used cover plants have the ability to break down contaminants. We also looked for plants that can break down or fix the pollutants in six categories -- nitrate, salts, metals, pesticides, plastics and antibiotic resistance genes," explains first author Dr Pooja Sharma, who is also a researcher in the Plant Biogeochemistry working group at the UFZ.

Based on the results of the literature review, the research team developed concepts for phytoremediation for the respective pollutant categories. For example, rye and sunflower could be used as cover plants to prevent excess nitrate in the arable soil from being washed out and polluting the groundwater. The plants absorb the nitrate from the soil to grow and can remain on the field as green manure. However, cover plants that remove unwanted metals such as cadmium from the soil should be removed. Various types of clover, rye or rape could be used for this. "The cover plants used to remove metals are not generally suitable as animal feed. But they could play a role in the production of biogas," says Pooja Sharma. "Sunflowers are also good at removing metals from the soil. Potentially metals mainly accumulate in the leaves, so that the seeds could be harvested." The same applies to the seeds of mustard, which, as an intercrop, removes pesticides from the soil in the same way as grass or sunn hemp.

It was difficult to identify cover plants that are particularly suitable for phytoremediation targeting the contaminant categories of plastic or antibiotic resistance genes. The researchers discuss that the interactions between soil microorganisms and cover plants also play an important role in whether and how well pollutants can be fixed, degraded or removed by phytoremediation. "A lot of research still needs to be done here -- working together with farmers. This is the only way to develop effective and practicable strategies for phytoremediation, tailored to different locations, soils and pollutant problems," says Marie Muehe. "From our perspective, using cover plants to manage soil pollutants could be an efficient future concept for healthier soils and more sustainable agriculture."

A UFZ research team will be launching a field study together with farmers as part of the SmartManure project in the summer of 2025. Their aim is to more closely investigate different cover plants and their remediation performance and to test the practicability of phytoremediation in agricultural practice.

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