Behavioural plasticity in the fanning response of bumblebee workers: impact of experience and rate of temperature change

► Bumblebee workers control the temperature of their brood by incubating and fanning. ► Using a brood dummy, we investigated the plasticity in the individual fanning response. ► Fanning response behaviour is modulated by rate of temperature increase. ► Fanning response thresholds are modulated by previous experience in task performance. ► The effect of experience depends on the time interval between task performances.