How it Works
Several flower patches of different species (each drawn in its own colour) are scattered across the canvas, each flower holding a nectar reserve that drains when a bee visits and slowly regenerates afterward. Every bee remembers which species of pollen it is currently carrying. When choosing its next flower, a bee rolls against the flower-constancy probability: with that probability it heads for the nearest flower of the same species it already carries, and otherwise it scores nearby flowers by a mix of proximity and remaining nectar and picks the best one regardless of species.
When a bee lands on a flower carrying pollen from a different species, that counts as a cross-pollination event — pollen from the old species is deposited on the new flower, a counter increments, and a faint edge is drawn on the small species network in the corner linking the two species. The bee then picks up the landed flower's pollen and drinks its nectar (draining the reserve) before flying off toward its next target, so the pattern of edges that accumulates over time reflects which species pairs actually get cross-pollinated most often given the current constancy and nectar settings.
Else: target = argmax_f ( nectar(f)/maxNectar − distanceWeight · dist(bee,f)/W )
Cross-pollination: if carriedSpecies ≠ flower.species → crossCount++, network[carried][flower.species] += 1
Nectar dynamics: nectar(f) += regenRate·dt; on visit nectar(f) -= drink; nectar ∈ [0, maxNectar]
Frequently Asked Questions
What is flower constancy?
Flower constancy is a real foraging bias where a pollinator tends to keep visiting the same flower species across consecutive trips instead of switching between species, even when a different species is closer or more rewarding, because it reduces the learning cost of handling different flower shapes.
How does a cross-pollination event happen in this simulation?
Each bee remembers the species of pollen it last picked up. When it lands on a flower of a different species while still carrying that older pollen, a cross-pollination event fires, an edge is strengthened between the two species on the network overlay, and the bee then picks up the new flower's pollen.
Why does nectar level affect where bees go?
When a bee is not being constant to its current species, it weighs nearby flowers by both distance and remaining nectar reward, so patches that have regenerated a large nectar reserve are more likely to be chosen than patches that were recently drained.
What does the flower constancy slider actually change?
It sets the probability that a bee, when picking its next flower, prefers the nearest flower of the same species it is currently carrying pollen from over switching to whichever nearby flower offers the best combination of distance and nectar.
Why is cross-pollination important in real ecosystems?
Cross-pollination between individuals, and sometimes closely related species, increases genetic diversity in plant populations, which improves seed viability and resilience to disease, so the network of pollinator visits shown here has a direct effect on plant fitness in nature.