A group of Australian scientists at the University of Queensland is hoping that the study of aggressive behavior in bees will lead to the improvement in missile technology.

A group of Australian scientists at the University of Queensland is hoping that the study of aggressive behavior in bees will lead to the improvement in missile technology.

Honey bees are fairly placid insects when left alone. But if antagonized, they will react violently.

Now researchers are trying to understand the aggressive behavior of bees, and the internal computer systems that govern them, in order for this to be replicated in new defense technologies.

The team have spent more than two decades unlocking the mysteries of bee vision and navigation, but Professor Srinivasan says research of this kind is unprecedented.

Prof. Mandyam Srinivasan, University of Queensland, said, "Do you simply blindly aim towards the target and fly as fast as possible towards it, or do you do something a little more intelligent, like compute an interception course?"

The team is filming bees flying towards fast-moving objects, then watching the footage in slow motion and plotting the insects' flight paths on computer diagrams.