Critical consensus formation in a symmetric honeybee nest-site selection process

Abstract

This paper explores collective decision-making in honeybee swarms, focusing on their nest-site selection process. Using the agent-based model proposed by List, Estholtz, and Seeley, we investigate how individual exploration and social interactions influence the bees’ ability to make group decisions. The model incorporates parameters like site quality, self-discovery probability, and interdependence to asses these interactions. We particularly analyze the dynamics of the system under equal-quality sites and fully interdependent conditions. A critical point is identified where the system undergoes a second order phase transition in out of equilibrium conditions. The transition resembles the one observed in a contact process, with finite size effects observed in numerical simulations. Finite-size effects allow the observation of fluctuations that, like in several real animal swarms, impact decisively the group decision-making process. Additionally, we briefly show how multiplicative noise in the system, modeled by Langevin equations, is responsible for the symmetry breaking between the equal quality nest-site options. The presence of a non-equilibrium critical point in this context provides new insight into the role of critical behavior in biological systems