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Some say the Monarch which makes amazing migrations or the Mourning Cloak which certainly has personality for a butterfly. Mydas Flies are large aerial predators with a lot of presence. Some bring up the Swamp Darner, a large dragonfly that easily enters open buildings, prowls around, and then leaves. Some are impressed by the Chinese Mantis's way of looking around and snatching prey. Sphinx Moths certainly have impressive speed and sometimes seem almost birdlike. The Black Witch may wander north to Alaska from the tropics and can listen and call. The American Cockroach has over a million neurons and uncanny survival skills. We are all impressed by the communication, social cooperation, and orienteering of the Honeybee. Tarantula Hawks are among the most impressive of the predatory wasps.
I hope to discuss these questions and more on the Animal Intelligence tribe (tribes.tribe.net/animal intelligence). We will mostly discuss the behavior, intelligence, and emotions of wild animals. Because animal intelligence and emotion are the basis for animal rights, we will also look into scientific methods of measuring animal intelligence.
I hope to discuss these questions and more on the Animal Intelligence tribe (tribes.tribe.net/animal intelligence). We will mostly discuss the behavior, intelligence, and emotions of wild animals. Because animal intelligence and emotion are the basis for animal rights, we will also look into scientific methods of measuring animal intelligence.
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sat, November 18, 2006 - 12:54 AMI think a lot of insects are pretty intelligent. Termites and ants build huge colonies. Several predators have very unique ways of attracting prey. Hmmm...I dont know, I dont think I can pick one. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sat, November 18, 2006 - 11:58 AMThere's an Assassin Bug that raids termite nests. The bug glues bits of the termite nest to its head, back and sides., which makes it smell and feel familiar to the termite soldiers that guard the nest. The Assassin Bug then reaches into the nest and captures a worker. It sucks the worker dry, leaving the exoskeleton whole. It then uses the empty shell as bait, jiggling it gently inside th opening of the nest until another worker seizes the corpse for disposal. Then the bug pulls it out and kills and eats the worker. Reportedly one Assassin Bug consumed 31 termites before leaving. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sun, November 19, 2006 - 4:11 PMIt is so funny that you brought that up, it was the example I was thinking of but couldnt remember all the details. My prof talked about it in my ento class a few weeks ago, I thought it was pretty damn intelligent for an insect! -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sun, November 19, 2006 - 4:24 PMI wonder what an entomology professor would say if you asked him or her what was the most intelligent insect. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sun, November 19, 2006 - 11:26 PMIf I get a chance I will ask him tomorrow. Hes old and a bit of a babbler though, guess I better be prepared, haha!
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Mon, November 20, 2006 - 11:35 PMAll right, so I talked to my prof this morning and got a typical Dr. Saul answer. So here is the short version
The most intelligent insect is based on your definition of intelligence. Intelligence is usually a measurement of IQ, or use of the frontal lobe, so this does not apply to the insect world. If intelligence is a measurement of how well animals do what they need to do in order to get by, then a slug is pretty intelligent. Ants are usually considered intelligent because they are social and build huge colonies. They also farm fungi, keep other insects as slaves, and develop war diversion tactics when fighting other colonies.
The conversation then turned away from this topic but there you go. One of the grad students I work with said she finds the caterpillars that jump off their leaf and hang by a thread pretty interesting. But the wasps that are intelligent enough to pull the thread up in order to sting the caterpillar on the other end are definatly up there on her list as well. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Mon, November 20, 2006 - 11:56 PMI haven't heard about those wasps. That reminds me of Bernd Heinrich's Ravens that pulled up dangling food and of the Black Bear that snagged my food sack that I had hung off a cliff.
Bird intelligence results from their hyperstriatum, not their forebrain. Insect intelligence may result from "mushroom bodies." Different groups of animals have different enlarged concentrations of neurons. Anyways, even though human forebrains are enlarged, all parts of our brain contribute to our intelligence.
When are they going to stop calling IQ a "measurement of how well animals do what they need to do in order to get by" ? Every animal and plant on earth "gets by" or they wouldn't be here. Every species succeeds because of its own unique combination of useful adaptations. Every animal species has its own level of brainpower that is part of its mix. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Tue, November 21, 2006 - 5:27 AM"When are they going to stop calling IQ a "measurement of how well animals do what they need..."
As an entomologist and professor, I'll encourage you to re-read her post. "They" don't do any such thing. IQ and "how well animals (or plants) do..." are alternatives. Her professor was pointing to two extreme and not-too-useful extremes in order to illustrate that the question of intelligence in non-human animals is barely intelligible. Nevertheless, one can (as you have) catalog abilities and, in some cases, infer some kinds of processing. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Tue, November 21, 2006 - 11:51 AMMany times I have heard the argument that all animals have equal intelligence because they all know what they have to do in order to survive. All of those people who have made similar arguments are the "they" I was referring to. Thomas Bullock (1986) simplified the debate, laying out the three "standard views" on comparative animal intelligence:
#1) animals have varying degrees of intelligence.
#2) humans stand out as far superior, all the others are the same.
#3) intelligence is too different in quality to compare in degree.
I am going with #1. "They" believe in #2. People who shy away from difficult intellectual challenges may go with #3.
William Hodos wrote, "Intelligence is not a biological property, like height or brain size; it is an abstraction based on value judgments about an organism's behavior made by an intelligence tester." The difficulty of comparing IQs of different species is what makes the effort intriguing. Plus that goal requires you to spend a lot of time in nature, honing your sense of those abstractions and value judgments.
Remember what John Stockton said when he retired. Although he never won an NBA title, he tried very hard to, and he had no regrets. "The reward was in the effort." The effort to figure out what's going on in an insect's mind requires you to learn all you can about its behavior, ecology, and biology. As Eric's chosen profession suggests to me, he finds it well worth it. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Wed, November 22, 2006 - 10:23 AMPersonally, I think the question, "which insect (animal) is the most intelligent" asked as posted is neither particularly well defined nor useful.
Bullock certainly *over*simplified, since my own view is certainly a combination of those. Calling behavioral adaptations "intelligent" or not is kind of silly. Comparing individuals within classes, less so. But, hey, whatever floats the boat...
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Mon, November 20, 2006 - 9:10 AMWow, that is brilliant!
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Fri, November 24, 2006 - 12:57 AMCockroaches learn to run and hide when the lights come on.
That's pretty smart, when you think about it.
I can't imagine what in their evolution would make this response automatic; we haven't had the on-off thing all that long, really. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Fri, November 24, 2006 - 1:40 PMHa ha ha!!
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sat, November 25, 2006 - 12:37 AMThat is an interesting point of view.
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sat, November 25, 2006 - 1:17 AMCockroaches come out at night. They hide from sunlight. By doing so, they won't be seen and captured by predators. What they have evolved is an emotional response to light. Now I don't think that their running away when you turn on the light is a sign of intelligence. Even once-celled organisms can show phototaxis. But, the route they take to escape can help reveal their IQ. Spatial orientation and route-finding can reflect overall brainpower. (Interesting fact, if true: the American Cockroach is the fastest-running insect). -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sat, August 1, 2009 - 1:57 AMShouldn't the ability to deal with a new situation, even a rudimentary problem solving ability be a sign of intelligence. Claiming an evolutionary set of attributes designed to cope with a particular habitat is a sign of intelligence is like saying that goose bumps shows how smart we are. The question is now, "Are there any insects that have this ability?" -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sun, September 6, 2009 - 10:03 PMWhen we're comparing brainpower in animals with a higher level of intelligence, like dogs and apes and horses, your definition would be useful. But comparing intelligence in animals with lower IQs, such as insects, is a new situation for many humans. This requires more creativity and open-mindedness on our part.
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sat, November 25, 2006 - 9:58 PMSO im thinking dragonflies need to be added to the list. I am very close to finishing up my insect collection for my class and a few weeks ago he keeper i work with at the zoo caught a dragon fly for me. Well today there was one from another family in our area so we were attempting to catch it. Well the damn thing managed to fly by just out of reach. Of course when we we not ready for it it came close enough, but when we were going for it it was out of reach. There was another one of the family I have already and one it figured out I wasnt going for it, it kept flying right by my head. I am tempted to go camp out next to the gibbon exhibit tomorrow morning to catch the damn thing out of spite, haha! I know in reality they are just really fast and good flyers and I have crappy hand eye coordination, but hey, intelligence could be a factor. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sat, November 25, 2006 - 11:40 PMDragonflies are hard to catch. Several species are known to follow large grazing animals to catch the insects that are stirred up by their hooves. In the same sort of manner, Golden-winged Skimmers have flown along with me when I drove a tractor down a dirt road through cornfields. But I think the darners are the most intelligent. I have seen Green Darners and Swamp Darners show what seems like curiosity.
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sun, November 26, 2006 - 11:19 AMwhy catch?
please don't -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Sun, November 26, 2006 - 6:48 PMI have to for a class I am taking. I need 75 specimens representing 12 different orders and 55 different families. Its not like I would do this for the hell of it. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Tue, November 28, 2006 - 6:46 PMwhat'll happen if you cant catch 'em? -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Tue, November 28, 2006 - 8:49 PMUmmm...I get a lower grade in the class since my grade is based on this project. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Wed, November 29, 2006 - 4:19 AMvery sad -
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Wed, November 29, 2006 - 9:44 PMwell at some point this weekend I am going to take some pictures of my specimens so everyone can enjoy! And the collections are not going to waste, all insects are going into a teaching collection that will be taken around the islands to use for educational purposes for kids of all ages. It is sad, I agree. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Fri, December 1, 2006 - 9:38 AMOk, so I attempted to take some pictures of my insects last night, but my camera isnt good enough to focus or something. I have some butterfly and moth pics, but I havent had a chance to upload them, maybe this weekend. Is there a trick to taking good pics of small creatures, of do you have to have a really good lens for it? -
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Mon, December 4, 2006 - 1:40 PMwho cares which is the most intelligent? would that make them better in some way than other insects? i shy away from this becuase humans use it as a value judgment to justify incredibly cruel acts upon animals when it means absolutely nothing. a person with mental retardation has a lower IQ than me, but does that make me more beautiful and worthy of love? i don't think so. everything and everyone deserves respect in its own right, regardless of how pretty or intelligent or useful we may judge it/them.
leave the question of "intelligence" up to the philosophers where it belongs. i don't think its ethical to apply to science questions since it is a human constructed value. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Tue, December 5, 2006 - 10:22 PMI know the idea of rating intelligence is kind of scary. We accept that our height, weight, blood pressure, and vertical leap can be measured, but the idea of actually slapping a number on our mental abilities is unsettling. Many people are offended by the idea of rating intelligence, like we would be saying that Dick is "not as good" as Jane. Is a short person any less of a human than a taller person? Is a thin person less of a human than a fat person? I would say no, we all deserve equal rights, whatever our pulse rate or T-cell count or time in the 40 yard dash. People take this fear of not measuring up mentally to the concept of rating animal intelligence. But measuring animal intelligence is not about DENYING animals their rights, it is about RESPECTING their rights. The traditional view is animal have no intelligence and no rights. I believe that animals DO have intelligence, even if less than a human, and DO deserve to have their rights respected. Also I think that killing dragonfly is a graver sin than killing a flea. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Wed, December 6, 2006 - 10:13 AMthanks for saying that so eloquently. those are my sentiments exactly, except the part about the flea. the sin isn't less, but the guilt i feel for killing a flea is less than a dragonfly. ;-) -
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Fri, December 8, 2006 - 12:41 AMI felt bad about the dragon fly I promise! I felt bad about the whole thing actutally, but I think I got an A, yeah for me!
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photos
Tue, December 5, 2006 - 10:48 AMYou maybe need an add-on macro lens, which will help to focus close up.
Some cameras have these available as accessories.
If you already have a camera with detachable lens then cheaper "macro rings" will enable you to get a closer focus.
... and once you got that, you can use it to photograph live insects too!
( rather a better way of 'recording' them ;-) as the photograph won't lose it's color.)
Another good way to study odonata without harm is to collect exuviae.
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Tue, December 5, 2006 - 12:41 PMIt's very difficult to take live shots of insects as they are small and quick. Often people freeze or gas them, although I avoid it myself.
The lens used to take shots of small things are macro lenses. They are specially designed to focus on objects very close to the lens. Normally a camera requires about a metre in order to focus properly; macro lenses can have a focal distance as short as 4"-6"
I have a Canon 100mm macro which is fantastic for the purpose.
Best of luck. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Tue, December 5, 2006 - 2:04 PMI use a macro lens with a sony TRV900 video camera to video insects. The range of focus is small, but some insects will ignore the nearby camera so you can get very tight and maintain video coverage. With a regular lens I can get pretty close to large insects, like butterflies at flowers, spiders in webs, perched dragonflies, grasshoppers, assassin bugs, water striders, carrion beetles, cicadas. Lots of good action at flowers.
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Fri, December 8, 2006 - 8:46 AM>> Often people freeze or gas them
putting insects in the freezer briefly (few minutes) is a great way to look at them without damaging them. just about any insect will become immobile as the temperature drops. it's normal, they won't die, and it is exactly the same thing that happens to them outside (some insects can even freeze solid and then thaw and live). a few minutes is all that is necessary and as they warm up they will start to move again like before. you can even look at them under a scope that way... -
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Sat, December 9, 2006 - 6:33 AMIf it's really necessary to "freeze" an insect then keep in mind that they will be vunerable to predation until they warm up again.
If you're patient, then it's not really difficult to observe and photograph insects without interfering with their lives.
...but sure, the "cooling" method looks like a good compromise.
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Re: What is the most intelligent academic exercise?
Mon, December 11, 2006 - 1:27 PMrefrigerate don't freeze. 38-40 degrees will slow them down just as well as the freezer. or if you have a cold slab (a flat piece of stone or marble that you keep in the freezer) you can use that to set smaller insects on for observation for a few minutes.
don't forget and leave your insects in the fridge though, they will eventually starve to death (after more than a day or two). and an overnight freeze in a typical freezer will kill most insects.
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Wed, November 29, 2006 - 8:39 AMI would add bees and praying mantis to the list. -
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Re: What is the most intelligent insect?
Wed, November 29, 2006 - 9:46 PMMantids are so cool!!! I was looking for insects at the zoo where I volunteer and we found a ton of mantids in the sun bear exhibit (the sun bears were not in the exhibit) I had the mantids crawling up my arm, they were still juveniles. I found it very entertaining.
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