Lars Chittka
@larschittka.bsky.social
Lars Chittka, Professor of Sensory and Behavioural Ecology and author of The Mind of a Bee
Our smart bees in Shaastra, a science and technology magazine published by the Indian Institute of Technology
November 22, 2025 at 1:16 PM
Our smart bees in Shaastra, a science and technology magazine published by the Indian Institute of Technology
Sliiiight exaggeration there by CNN, but nonetheless happy about this new collaborative study with Eli Versace's team: @elisabettaversace.bsky.social edition.cnn.com/2025/11/12/s...
Scientists now know that bees can process time, a first in insects | CNN
Bumblebees can process the duration of flashes of light and use the information to decide where to look for food, a new study has found.
edition.cnn.com
November 17, 2025 at 3:47 PM
Sliiiight exaggeration there by CNN, but nonetheless happy about this new collaborative study with Eli Versace's team: @elisabettaversace.bsky.social edition.cnn.com/2025/11/12/s...
Do bees see nothing? Primates with damage to the visual cortex have no conscious visual experience, but display adaptive visual behaviour (a phenomenon called blindsight). Here I team up with two primate researchers to ask if bee vision could be similar to blindsight. www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
November 17, 2025 at 9:55 AM
Do bees see nothing? Primates with damage to the visual cortex have no conscious visual experience, but display adaptive visual behaviour (a phenomenon called blindsight). Here I team up with two primate researchers to ask if bee vision could be similar to blindsight. www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
The earliest mature debate about animal consciousness occurred around 1900 and centred on the insects. We cover this rich history in this new article, as well as some more recent developments on the topic: royalsocietypublishing.org/.../10.../rs...
November 14, 2025 at 12:54 PM
The earliest mature debate about animal consciousness occurred around 1900 and centred on the insects. We cover this rich history in this new article, as well as some more recent developments on the topic: royalsocietypublishing.org/.../10.../rs...
Reposted by Lars Chittka
🐦 EcoBird is hiring a Postdoc in animal cognition!
Join us + @themanybirds.bsky.social to investigate innovation & problem-solving in birds.
📅 Start: as early as Jan 2026
🌍 Funded through UGent’s international mobility scheme
More info & how to apply ↓
www.ugent.be/en/work/scie...
Join us + @themanybirds.bsky.social to investigate innovation & problem-solving in birds.
📅 Start: as early as Jan 2026
🌍 Funded through UGent’s international mobility scheme
More info & how to apply ↓
www.ugent.be/en/work/scie...
Postdoctoral fellow
www.ugent.be
November 13, 2025 at 2:23 PM
🐦 EcoBird is hiring a Postdoc in animal cognition!
Join us + @themanybirds.bsky.social to investigate innovation & problem-solving in birds.
📅 Start: as early as Jan 2026
🌍 Funded through UGent’s international mobility scheme
More info & how to apply ↓
www.ugent.be/en/work/scie...
Join us + @themanybirds.bsky.social to investigate innovation & problem-solving in birds.
📅 Start: as early as Jan 2026
🌍 Funded through UGent’s international mobility scheme
More info & how to apply ↓
www.ugent.be/en/work/scie...
Reposted by Lars Chittka
Hey folks, it's been a while!
I just wanted to share my latest paper with @larschittka.bsky.social exploring consciousness in insects!
Have a read if you want to learn more about this fascinating subject 😀
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
I just wanted to share my latest paper with @larschittka.bsky.social exploring consciousness in insects!
Have a read if you want to learn more about this fascinating subject 😀
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
The exploration of consciousness in insects | Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Consciousness is a state of subjective experience or awareness, e.g. of an emotion, the self or external objects. In humans, this awareness is underpinned by a suite of cognitive functions, from attention to metacognition. To understand the evolution of ...
royalsocietypublishing.org
November 13, 2025 at 9:51 AM
Hey folks, it's been a while!
I just wanted to share my latest paper with @larschittka.bsky.social exploring consciousness in insects!
Have a read if you want to learn more about this fascinating subject 😀
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
I just wanted to share my latest paper with @larschittka.bsky.social exploring consciousness in insects!
Have a read if you want to learn more about this fascinating subject 😀
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...
Reposted by Lars Chittka
Here: a bee trained to discriminate between long and short duration by @alexdqm.bsky.social @ishaninanda.bsky.social
#AnitaOng for "Duration discrimination in the bumblebee..."
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/epdf/10....
@royalsocietypublishing.org
cc @larschittka.bsky.social sky.social
#AnitaOng for "Duration discrimination in the bumblebee..."
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/epdf/10....
@royalsocietypublishing.org
cc @larschittka.bsky.social sky.social
November 12, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Here: a bee trained to discriminate between long and short duration by @alexdqm.bsky.social @ishaninanda.bsky.social
#AnitaOng for "Duration discrimination in the bumblebee..."
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/epdf/10....
@royalsocietypublishing.org
cc @larschittka.bsky.social sky.social
#AnitaOng for "Duration discrimination in the bumblebee..."
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/epdf/10....
@royalsocietypublishing.org
cc @larschittka.bsky.social sky.social
Reposted by Lars Chittka
2/n This 🐝 work has been a great collaboration between
@alexdqm.bsky.social ,
@ishaninanda.bsky.social
# AnitaOngLayMun @larschittka.bsky.social and me from
@preparedmindslab.bsky.social
see below for a videoclip of the bees
@queenmarycbb.bsky.social
@alexdqm.bsky.social ,
@ishaninanda.bsky.social
# AnitaOngLayMun @larschittka.bsky.social and me from
@preparedmindslab.bsky.social
see below for a videoclip of the bees
@queenmarycbb.bsky.social
November 12, 2025 at 2:58 PM
2/n This 🐝 work has been a great collaboration between
@alexdqm.bsky.social ,
@ishaninanda.bsky.social
# AnitaOngLayMun @larschittka.bsky.social and me from
@preparedmindslab.bsky.social
see below for a videoclip of the bees
@queenmarycbb.bsky.social
@alexdqm.bsky.social ,
@ishaninanda.bsky.social
# AnitaOngLayMun @larschittka.bsky.social and me from
@preparedmindslab.bsky.social
see below for a videoclip of the bees
@queenmarycbb.bsky.social
Un conversatorio mañana en la Sociedad de Estudiantes del Instituto de Fisiología Celular, UNAM Ciudad de Mexico. Debería ser divertido!
November 12, 2025 at 10:16 PM
Un conversatorio mañana en la Sociedad de Estudiantes del Instituto de Fisiología Celular, UNAM Ciudad de Mexico. Debería ser divertido!
Interesting title that... journals.biologists.com/jeb/article-...
Auditory encoding during the last moment of a moth's life
SUMMARY. The simple auditory system of noctuoid moths has long been a model for anti-predator studies in neuroethology, although these ears have rarely been experimentally stimulated by the sounds the...
journals.biologists.com
November 10, 2025 at 6:44 PM
Interesting title that... journals.biologists.com/jeb/article-...
We have a PhD student opening for Insect Cognition via the CSC (Chinese citizens only in this case - deadline January 28) - please pass on to anyone who might be interested and qualified: www.qmul.ac.uk/sbbs/postgra...
November 7, 2025 at 6:47 PM
We have a PhD student opening for Insect Cognition via the CSC (Chinese citizens only in this case - deadline January 28) - please pass on to anyone who might be interested and qualified: www.qmul.ac.uk/sbbs/postgra...
Looking forward to giving a presentation at the Matthaei Botanical Gardens Auditorium in Ann Arbor next week
November 7, 2025 at 2:58 PM
Looking forward to giving a presentation at the Matthaei Botanical Gardens Auditorium in Ann Arbor next week
Reposted by Lars Chittka
in Italian: Do insects feel pain? www.ilpost.it/2025/10/13/i... it covers also @preparedmindslab.bsky.social work in collaboration with @larschittka.bsky.social
www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1... , www.cell.com/iscience/ful...
www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1... , www.cell.com/iscience/ful...
Gli insetti provano dolore? - Il Post
È una possibilità sempre più indagata dalla ricerca e che potrebbe cambiare in modo fondamentale il nostro rapporto con loro
www.ilpost.it
October 29, 2025 at 8:29 AM
in Italian: Do insects feel pain? www.ilpost.it/2025/10/13/i... it covers also @preparedmindslab.bsky.social work in collaboration with @larschittka.bsky.social
www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1... , www.cell.com/iscience/ful...
www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1... , www.cell.com/iscience/ful...
Happy to give a presentation in such illustrious company at the 3rd International Conference on Bee Health at the Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University in Fuzhou, China this coming week
October 26, 2025 at 1:35 PM
Happy to give a presentation in such illustrious company at the 3rd International Conference on Bee Health at the Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University in Fuzhou, China this coming week
Exciting new work from former team members Eric Romero, Cwyn Solvi, Fei Peng and colleagues makes the cover of Science: affective contagion in bumblebees! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
October 24, 2025 at 6:13 AM
Exciting new work from former team members Eric Romero, Cwyn Solvi, Fei Peng and colleagues makes the cover of Science: affective contagion in bumblebees! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
A few of my ideas on PhD student training
Encouraging independence, creativity and diversity helps supervisors shape future leaders and spark breakthroughs. www.timeshighereducation.com/campus/how-t... #Academia #HigherEd #AcademicChatter #AcademicSky #PhDsky @qmul.bsky.social @larschittka.bsky.social
How to train PhD Jedi
Training PhD students is less about supervision and more about empowerment. By fostering independence, creativity and diversity, supervisors can nurture the next generation of scientific leaders, and ...
www.timeshighereducation.com
October 9, 2025 at 12:22 PM
A few of my ideas on PhD student training
Coming soon: Response-specific behavioral plasticity in habituation triggered by repeated visual looming stimuli in foraging bumblebees (Bombus terrestris), by Dissegna, Andrea Chittka, Lars and Chiandetti, Cinzia psycnet.apa.org/record/2026-...
APA PsycNet
psycnet.apa.org
October 7, 2025 at 4:20 PM
Coming soon: Response-specific behavioral plasticity in habituation triggered by repeated visual looming stimuli in foraging bumblebees (Bombus terrestris), by Dissegna, Andrea Chittka, Lars and Chiandetti, Cinzia psycnet.apa.org/record/2026-...
Reposted by Lars Chittka
At our launching event "Mind, Tech, and Wellbeing" for our new Research Centre for Brain and Behaviour at QMUL! Follow us on here @queenmarycbb.bsky.social to hear more about our research
@qmul.bsky.social @larschittka.bsky.social
@qmul.bsky.social @larschittka.bsky.social
September 29, 2025 at 2:42 PM
At our launching event "Mind, Tech, and Wellbeing" for our new Research Centre for Brain and Behaviour at QMUL! Follow us on here @queenmarycbb.bsky.social to hear more about our research
@qmul.bsky.social @larschittka.bsky.social
@qmul.bsky.social @larschittka.bsky.social
Reposted by Lars Chittka
Insect spatial memory is thought to be based on panoramic snapshots that are modelled as retinotopic images. This idea won't allow a distinction of landmarks from the scene. Unexpectedly, our data suggest that 🐝 learn 3D-objects as individual landmarks. #neuroethology
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
September 28, 2025 at 10:54 AM
Insect spatial memory is thought to be based on panoramic snapshots that are modelled as retinotopic images. This idea won't allow a distinction of landmarks from the scene. Unexpectedly, our data suggest that 🐝 learn 3D-objects as individual landmarks. #neuroethology
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Lars Chittka
Nature book challenge. A book per day in no particular order, until you've shared ALL of the best nature books in your personal library. No explanations, no reviews.
#Books #Nature #Naturewriting #naturebooks #conservation #naturebookchallenge #booksky
#bees #bumblebees
#NatureBookChallenge
#Books #Nature #Naturewriting #naturebooks #conservation #naturebookchallenge #booksky
#bees #bumblebees
#NatureBookChallenge
September 20, 2025 at 6:44 PM
Nature book challenge. A book per day in no particular order, until you've shared ALL of the best nature books in your personal library. No explanations, no reviews.
#Books #Nature #Naturewriting #naturebooks #conservation #naturebookchallenge #booksky
#bees #bumblebees
#NatureBookChallenge
#Books #Nature #Naturewriting #naturebooks #conservation #naturebookchallenge #booksky
#bees #bumblebees
#NatureBookChallenge
When bees carry individual marks, you realise that they are not "attracted to flowers" like some silly reflex machines - in fact they know where they're going and the same individuals often return to the same flowers whose locations, appearance and rewards they have learned. Go Orange 24!
September 19, 2025 at 9:31 AM
When bees carry individual marks, you realise that they are not "attracted to flowers" like some silly reflex machines - in fact they know where they're going and the same individuals often return to the same flowers whose locations, appearance and rewards they have learned. Go Orange 24!
Reposted by Lars Chittka
Very proud of this extremely collaborative piece: academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...
Here, we show that divergence in visual systems - in response to differences in the light environment - leads to rapid divergence in sexually selected colour traits. Work brilliantly led by Madeleine Carruthers. 🐟👀🎨
Here, we show that divergence in visual systems - in response to differences in the light environment - leads to rapid divergence in sexually selected colour traits. Work brilliantly led by Madeleine Carruthers. 🐟👀🎨
Rapid Divergence of Visual Systems and Signaling Traits to Contrasting Light Regimes During Early Speciation of African Crater Lake Cichlid Fish
Abstract. Sensory adaptation is widely hypothesized to drive ecological speciation, yet empirical evidence from natural populations undergoing early stage
academic.oup.com
September 16, 2025 at 4:23 PM
Very proud of this extremely collaborative piece: academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...
Here, we show that divergence in visual systems - in response to differences in the light environment - leads to rapid divergence in sexually selected colour traits. Work brilliantly led by Madeleine Carruthers. 🐟👀🎨
Here, we show that divergence in visual systems - in response to differences in the light environment - leads to rapid divergence in sexually selected colour traits. Work brilliantly led by Madeleine Carruthers. 🐟👀🎨
Reposted by Lars Chittka
Come and work with us! Three new academic posts (including Animal Behaviour) and superb facilities in the new Life & Mind Building
Oxford Biology is growing 📢
We’re appointing 3 Associate Professors in:
🌱 Plant Sciences
🦉 Animal Behaviour
🔬 Molecular Cell Biology
3 fields. 3 opportunities. One new home for Oxford Biology.
Learn more 👉 bit.ly/41S2Tc7
Apply now 👉 bit.ly/488CNW3
We’re appointing 3 Associate Professors in:
🌱 Plant Sciences
🦉 Animal Behaviour
🔬 Molecular Cell Biology
3 fields. 3 opportunities. One new home for Oxford Biology.
Learn more 👉 bit.ly/41S2Tc7
Apply now 👉 bit.ly/488CNW3
September 15, 2025 at 12:54 PM
Come and work with us! Three new academic posts (including Animal Behaviour) and superb facilities in the new Life & Mind Building
Reposted by Lars Chittka
🆕 Lars Chittka in der Sendung „Im Gespräch“, Deutschlandfunk Kultur:
www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/bienenforsch...
www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/bienenforsch...
Bienenforscher Lars Chittka - Denkende Bienen und spielende Hummeln
Bienen und Hummeln sind ganz schön schlau. So hat Bienenforscher Lars Chittka herausgefunden, dass diese Insekten zählen und spielen können.
www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de
September 4, 2025 at 12:54 PM
🆕 Lars Chittka in der Sendung „Im Gespräch“, Deutschlandfunk Kultur:
www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/bienenforsch...
www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/bienenforsch...
New paper on male bumblebee spatial movement strategies: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Male bumblebees adapt foraging to environmental conditions to sustain mate-seeking efforts
Male bees navigate complex trade-offs between energy acquisition and reproductive signalling, yet their movement strategies remain understudied. Unlike workers that optimise foraging to support the co...
www.biorxiv.org
September 12, 2025 at 11:29 AM
New paper on male bumblebee spatial movement strategies: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...