Bees have fascinating color vision abilities that allow them to see colors that humans cannot. Their color perception is driven by their need to find flowers for nectar and pollen. Bees have photoreceptors for ultraviolet, blue, and green light which gives them trichromatic color vision. This allows them to detect very subtle differences in colors that appear identical to human vision. Understanding what colors bees are attracted to or dislike can help gardeners design bee-friendly flower gardens.
Do bees see color?
Yes, bees have excellent color vision. They have three types of photoreceptors which allow them to see in the ultraviolet, blue, and green spectral ranges. Their vision is well-suited to spot flowers among green foliage. The three photoreceptors give bees trichromatic color vision, meaning they can perceive a wide range of colors based on mixing those three primary colors in different ratios. Interestingly, bees cannot see the color red. The red flowers that attract bees actually reflect UV light, which bees perceive as a color.
What colors can bees see?
Bees see colors in the following main ranges:
- Ultraviolet – Bees see ultraviolet patterns on flowers that are invisible to humans. Many flowers have ultraviolet markings that guide bees to the nectar.
- Blue – Bees have blue photoreceptors that detect light at wavelengths around 440 nm.
- Green – Green receptors give bees the ability to detect flower colors in contrast to the green background of leaves and vegetation.
Bees cannot see the color red or colors in the red end of the spectrum like orange and pink. They do however see some reddish flowers, because the flowers reflect UV light instead of red. To bees, those flowers appear in a unique UV color that humans cannot perceive.
What flower colors attract bees?
Bees are generally attracted to blue, yellow, white, and purple flowers. These colors are easy for bees to see against green foliage. Flowers that appear red to us but reflect UV, like poppies, also attract bees.
Some of the top bee-attracting flower colors are:
- Blue – Bees see blue flowers very well. Azure-blue is a top bee attractor.
- Purple – From lavender to lilac, bees seek out purple flowers.
- Yellow – Bees have receptors specifically for yellow wavelengths.
- White – Crisp white flowers guide bees to nectar.
- UV Red – Poppies and other red flowers that reflect UV light attract bees.
What colors do bees dislike?
Bees have trouble seeing the color red, as well as orange and pink flowers. Red flowers lack the UV cues that attract pollinators. Without those guides, bees often pass them over in favor of more visible colors.
Some flower colors that bees seem to dislike include:
- Red
- Orange
- Pink
- Brown
- Black
These darker colors on flowers do not offer enough contrast for bees to easily identify them or see nectar guides. While bees do visit some darker blooms, flowers in these shades are generally not as attractive to them compared to brighter blue, yellow, and white.
Do bees have a favorite color?
Bees do not necessarily have an absolute favorite color, but they are particularly drawn to the color blue. Blue flowers, especially lighter pastel shades, are highly visible to bees and they can easily detect the nectar guides.
Blue is not only visually stimulating to bees, but studies have shown bumblebees actually prefer blue when given a choice between rewarding flowers of different colors. The color blue likely indicates a good nectar source to bees in the wild.
Other especially bee-friendly flower colors include purple, violet, white, and yellow. Ultraviolet-reflecting blooms also rate high in attractiveness.
Why are bees attracted to some colors more than others?
Bees have evolved to see certain flower colors better than others. Their color preferences rely on the three types of photoreceptors they possess:
- UV photoreceptors – Detect ultraviolet flower patterns and cues
- Blue photoreceptors – See blue, violet, purple flowers
- Green photoreceptors – Help locate flowers against green foliage
Colors like blue and purple strongly stimulate the blue receptors. Yellow excites the green receptors. White activates both blue and green receptors fairly equally. That makes these colors highly visible to bees.
Red, orange, brown, and pink flowers lack ultraviolet patterning and don’t stimulate bee color receptors well. Those colors also blend more easily into vegetation, making it hard for bees to spot them.
How do bees use color when foraging?
Bees utilize color vision like a tool to assess flowers and increase foraging efficiency. Their ability to see ultraviolet patterns on flowers helps lead them to nectar. Certain colors tell bees that a flower is worth stopping at for food.
Some of the ways bees use color include:
- Finding flowers – Color contrast attracts their eyes to potential food sources.
- Identifying nectar guides – UV lines point directly to nectar.
- Assessing pollen – Yellow pollen is very visible against other colors.
- Food preferences – Bees learn to associate colors with nectar rewards.
- Flower constancy – Bees will stick to a flower color once it proves rewarding.
By honing in on colors they can easily see and interpret, bees maximize their foraging success while expending the least amount of time and energy.
Do bees have a color preference for pollen?
Bees seem to prefer bright yellow pollen. Yellow pollen stands out against other flower colors, making it easy for bees to spot. Research indicates bees can learn to differentiate between rewards offered by yellow versus blue flowers. They readily associated yellow flowers with pollen and favored those.
In general, bees visit flowers primarily for nectar. But they consume pollen as a protein source. The high visibility and association with pollen may explain why bees favor yellow flowers when specifically foraging for pollen.
How do bees use ultraviolet light to find flowers?
Many flowers have ultraviolet-reflecting patterns on their petals that act as nectar guides. These guide markings are invisible to humans, but visible as a distinct color to bees. The patterns point directly to the center of the flower where nectar can be found.
Typical ultraviolet bee guides include:
- Bullseye target – concentric circles guide the bee
- Runway lines – parallel lines point toward the nectar
- Nectar arrow – thick UV arrow head points the way
Bees easily learn these UV markings, and preferentially visit flowers that display them. The patterns help bees quickly orient to a flower and locate nectar. This saves them time and energy while foraging.
How do flowers use color to attract bees?
Flowers have evolved colors, patterns, and ultraviolet cues specifically tailored to appeal to bees. Some of the ways flowers use color to attract bee pollinators include:
- Bright contrasting colors – easily spotted against green foliage
- Blue and purple hues – highly visible to bee eyes
- Ultraviolet nectar guides – help direct bees to nectar
- Yellow pollen – color that bees associate with pollen reward
- Red UV patterns – red blooms reflect UV light
Flowers that are primarily pollinated by bees tend to have evolved these sorts of bee-friendly colors and patterns. Their visual signals speak the language of bee vision and draw in pollinators.
Do bees have a favorite flower color?
Bees do seem to be particularly fond of the color blue. Blue flowers, especially lighter pastel shades, are highly attractive to bee pollinators.
In lab studies, bumblebees clearly preferred blue artificial flowers over other colors, even when rewards were equal. They also learned to associate blue with sweet nectar. In the wild, bees flock to blue-hued blooms.
A few reasons why bees may favor blue include:
- Blue excites their blue photoreceptors
- Light blue offers high contrast against vegetation
- They’ve learned blue flowers offer good nectar
Blue flowers aren’t necessarily more nutritious, but the color itself seems to be highly stimulating and rewarding to a bee’s visual system.
What do bees see when they look at red flowers?
Bees cannot see the color red. Their eyes lack red color receptors. However, some reddish flowers, like poppies, reflect ultraviolet light from their petals. When a bee looks at a red poppy, it sees a distinctive ultraviolet color pattern instead of red.
Other red flowers that lack UV patterning appear dark or black to a bee. Bees rely on color cues to find nectar, so solid red blooms can be almost invisible to their eyes.
Red flowers that appear vibrant to us seem dull and shapeless to bees. It’s like a flower with no colors at all. Bees may still visit red flowers, but color alone won’t attract them.
How do different colored flowers appear to bees?
| Flower Color | Appears to Humans As | Appears to Bees As |
|---|---|---|
| Red | Bright red | Dark or black |
| Orange | Vibrant orange | Dark or black |
| Yellow | Cheery yellow | Bright yellow |
| Blue | Pretty blue | Strong blue |
| Purple | Lovely purple | Bold purple |
| White | Bright white | High contrast |
| UV-red | Bright red to us | Unique UV color |
Bees see more blues and less reds than we do. Certain UV patterns are invisible to humans. Flower colors provide different visual cues to bees than what we perceive.
Do bees have color vision like humans?
Bees see color differently than humans in a few key ways:
- Bees see ultraviolet light, but humans cannot.
- Bees cannot see the color red, while it is visible to humans.
- Humans have trichromatic vision using red, blue, and green receptors.
- Bees have trichromatic vision using UV, blue, and green receptors.
- The red end of the spectrum appears very dark to bees.
- The UV part of the spectrum is entirely invisible to humans.
So while both humans and bees have color vision, bees effectively see some colors that are not visible to humans, and miss other colors that humans readily see.
Do bees have better color vision than humans?
In some respects, bees have better color vision compared to humans. Their ability to perceive ultraviolet patterns gives them an advantage at finding nectar guides on flowers. Bees can also detect slight variations in color that all look identical to humans.
On the other hand, having three color receptors means bees have trichromatic vision like humans, rather than superior tetrachromatic vision. Tetrachromats have four color receptors. Plus, bees completely lack the ability to see the color red or differentiate warm long-wavelength colors.
Overall, bee color perception is very well adapted to their needs in nature. It exceeds human vision in some aspects and has limitations in others. Neither is universally superior, but the differences are fascinating.
How many colors can bees see?
Bees have trichromatic color vision, meaning they have three types of photoreceptors that allow them to distinguish multiple colors. The exact number of colors bees can discriminate is not known, but some estimates include:
- 100 – 150 distinct colors based on their three photoreceptor types
- 300 colors discernible by the human eye
In comparison, the average person can see around 1 million different colors based on our three color receptors. Bees see a more limited color palette compared to humans, but make up for it with the ability to see ultraviolet.
How many more colors can bees see than humans?
Bees can see some colors from the ultraviolet spectrum that are outside the range of human vision. However, they cannot perceive colors at the red end of the spectrum visible to humans.
Estimates indicate bees can distinguish between 100-150 unique colors based on their ultraviolet, blue and green photoreceptors. Humans with normal color vision can see around 1 million colors based on different combinations of red, green and blue receptors.
So while bees can see some colors humans cannot, overall the human eye can detect far more colors across a broader spectrum. Bees have more limited color vision, but it is specialized for their needs.
Conclusion
Bees have fascinating, highly specialized color vision compared to humans. Their eyes have evolved to see the colors and patterns that will lead them to nectar and pollen. While bees cannot see red, they detect ultraviolet patterns on flowers that help guide them to rewards.
Preferred bee colors like blue, purple, white, and yellow stand out brightly against green foliage. Dark reds, oranges, and pinks are drab and blend into plants to a bee’s eye. Understanding the bee’s perspective of color can help gardeners choose flowers that are naturally attractive to these essential pollinators.