**Nature Nugget**

It has been expressed in a metaphorical sense that “we all see the world through different lenses.” In the animal world this is true in a very literal way, with animals using their senses with varying levels of sophistication to succeed in the environment in which they live. This time of year it is particularly interesting to think of the sense of sight as it relates to the bee.

With approximately 150 species of native bees in the Bay Area, plants all around us have evolved extravagant flowers full of nectar and pollen to entice these bees and other pollinators in order to maximize pollination. Vision is critical to bees, because they feed on that nectar and pollen—and that means they have to find these flowers. And, although bees do use odor cues at close range, it is their remarkable eyesight that is most astounding and advantageous.

Like us, bees are trichromatic, which means they have three photoreceptors within the eye, and they base their colors on combinations of these three colors. Humans base their color on combinations of red, blue and green light, while bees base their colors on blue, green and ultraviolet light. Bees can’t see the color red, although they can see reddish wavelengths, such as yellow and orange. They can, however, see in the ultraviolet spectrum, which humans cannot. This ability to see ultraviolet light reveals "landing strips" on many plants which are invisible to the human eye, but act to guide bees to the part of the plant containing nectar and pollen.

Bees have an exceptional “flicker” threshold, in which they can see individual flowers while traveling at high speeds. This is why honey bees easily pollinate moving flowers. Flying helps bees see better, in depth and three dimensions. Bees also can judge distance well, using the objects they fly by to create their own mental maps, which they later can share and communicate with their hive through a sophisticated “waggle dance.”