Honeybees can tell other bees where to find food.
They do it with movement.
A worker that finds a valuable food source may return to the hive and perform a waggle dance.
The dance contains direction information
The direction of the waggle portion gives other bees information about where the food lies relative to the position of the Sun.
The dance therefore functions as more than excitement.
It contains navigational information.
The pattern also relates to distance
The length and pattern of the dance provide information connected with how far away the food source is.
Other bees follow the dancer closely.
They use the movement as a guide.
Smell helps too
The bees do not rely only on the dance.
The recorded explanation notes that smell also helps other bees locate the food.
The dance can point them toward the right area.
Odor helps identify what they are looking for when they arrive.
What happens as the Sun moves?
Honeybees can compensate as the Sun changes position across the sky.
That makes the communication system more flexible than a fixed set of directions.
The dance continues to provide useful information even as the reference point in the sky changes.
Do all bees communicate this way?
No.
The recorded explanation specifically notes that not every bee species uses this system.
The famous waggle dance is associated with honeybee communication.
Why is this so impressive?
One bee gathers information in the outside world.
It returns to a dark hive.
Then it converts that information into a physical pattern that other bees can use.
That is a very detailed form of animal communication.
It is also different from how ants use pheromone trails to direct other colony members toward food.
Different insects found different ways to leave directions.
So a bee returning to the hive is not just announcing that it found flowers.
It can provide useful directions to get there.
And that’s the short explanation.
Related explanations: Why do ants follow the same path?, Why do fireflies glow?, and Why do moths fly around lights?