托福听力

🎧 听力原文

Listen to part of a lecture in a biology class. The professor is discussing animal communication. Professor: Today we’re going to look at how animals communicate, focusing on a fascinating example: the dance of honeybees. When a worker bee finds a good source of nectar, it returns to the hive and performs a series of movements. These movements, called the waggle dance, actually convey detailed information about the location of the food. The direction of the dance relative to the sun tells other bees the direction to fly. The duration of the waggle run indicates the distance—the longer the run, the farther the food source. Interestingly, the accuracy of this information can be affected by environmental factors, such as wind and the quality of the food. However, not all bees perform the dance with equal skill; younger bees tend to make more errors than older, more experienced ones. This suggests that learning plays a role in communication, even in insects.