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blackdragonstory t1_itu9ll4 wrote

Reply to comment by JesseGT in For us, giants are fiction, for insects they’re a reality by Purple_burglar_alarm

I guess but let's say you wack one,then the other the third and others are watching. They should be able to adapt. Some flys that I would call stupid but unwilling to die are the flys that don't want to land at all,they keep flying,they land somewhere for a few seconds and then again. It's like they know the house is a bad place for flys and desperately wants out. Or maybe I am looking too much i to this lel.

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Kajamaz t1_ituhyo2 wrote

Idk, I've setup fly traps and it kills each and every single one of them. They fly into a small container filled with hundreds of dead fruit flys, don't think twice, and die in it as well. So much for adaptability.

Tbh they're just super awesome tiny biological machines really.

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blackdragonstory t1_ituo5pq wrote

Maybe they can't tell those flys are dead. And since they live for so short they are prob not experienced enough to know it's a trap.

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ChrysMYO t1_itv0nrk wrote

I dont think they learn in that way. I think they react to stimuli more then plan and anticipate. I think you have to move up to rodents and small lizards before you get any animal planning based on past memories.

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ApexHolly t1_itv5uzj wrote

Actually, scientists discovered that jumping spiders (cute lil things) have abstract memory, and are able to remember hazards they've previously encountered, as well as take the long way to their target if they think it would be safer. Which indicates that they at least have a rudimentary understanding of cause and effect, allowing them to plan. They also have great vision. There's a video of a jumping spider watching a helicopter overhead.

Having said that, jumping spiders, according to presently available data, seem to be along the upper edge of what "bug" cognition can do, and certainly smarter than the majority of spiders. Although spiders already tend to be fairly smart when compared to other bugs, such as flies.

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ChrysMYO t1_itvekcv wrote

Really good point. Yeah I could see a few spiders being able to plan and learn.

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