Measuring honey bee feeding rhythms with the BeeBox, a platform for nectar foraging insects.

In honey bees, most studies of circadian rhythms involve a locomotion test performed in a small tube, a tunnel, or at the hive entrance. However, despite feeding playing an important role in honey bee health or fitness, no demonstration of circadian rhythm on feeding has been performed until recently. Here, we present the BeeBox, a new laboratory platform for bees based on the concept of the Skinner box, which dispenses discrete controlled amounts of food (sucrose syrup) following entrance into an artificial flower.