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Brief Communications

Nature 410, 1048 (26 April 2001) | doi:10.1038/35074183

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Chronobiology: Reversal of honeybee behavioural rhythms

Guy Bloch1 & Gene E. Robinson1,2

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Adult honeybees have sleep-like states1, 2 and, like human infants3, bees develop their own endogenous circadian rhythms as they mature4, 5. But whereas disruption of our sleep cycles and synchronized internal rhythms may adversely affect our physiology and performance3, we show here that honeybees can revert to certain arrhythmic behaviours when necessary. To our knowledge, this chronobiological plasticity is the first example in any animal of a socially mediated reversal in activity rhythms.