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Don’t reach for the bug spray: crickets stroke a sore antenna, as cues suggest insects feel pain
TL;DR
New research indicates that crickets may experience pain, as they exhibit behaviors similar to dogs nursing injuries. Scientists observed crickets grooming a sore antenna, suggesting a form of self-protection.
Key points
- Crickets may experience pain according to new research.
- They exhibit behaviors like grooming a sore antenna.
- Pain perception in insects is difficult to establish.
- Scientists look for behavioral cues to assess pain.
Mentioned in this story
Thomas WhiteUniversity of Sydney
Do insects feel pain? Crickets certainly seem to, according to new research which finds they stroke and groom a sore antenna in much the same way as a dog nurses its hurt paw.
Associate Prof Thomas White, an entomologist from the University of Sydney, said the experience of pain was a “longer, drawn-out, ouchy feeling”, that differed from a hardwired nerve response.
But evidence for pain is difficult to establish in other species, he says, so scientists look for behavioural cues. One indicator is “flexible self-protection”, where an animal directs protection to a particular body part over an extended period of time.
“You see a dog, limping, or licking its paw, or holding one particular arm – of course, we’d immediately say, well that’s in pain, it must be sore.” Scientists search for evidence of similar responses to ascribe pain to other animals, including insects.
So, to test the idea in crickets, researchers first had to give them an “ouchy”.
In the study, published in Proceedings of the Royal Society, dozens of crickets were randomly selected to receive one of three treatments. Some had a heated soldering iron applied to one antenna, while other crickets received the same probe; unheated, and a third acted as a control.
The soldering iron was set to 65C – hot enough to be a “bit unpleasant”, without causing lasting harm, White says.
Crickets that received the hot probe “overwhelmingly” directed their attention to the affected antenna – they groomed it more frequently, and tended to it over a longer period of time, he says. “They weren’t just agitated and flustered. They were directing their attention to the actual antennae that was hit with this hot probe.”
The other crickets? They were a bit perturbed, he says, but resumed normal activity very, very quickly.
White says the behavioural responses would be immediately recognisable to us as pain, if we observed them in our pets or friends. “Which raises the question, why don’t we make the same inference here?” The answer, he says, has to do with human history, culture and insects’ lack of similarity to us.
Q&A
Do crickets feel pain like mammals do?
Yes, research suggests that crickets exhibit behaviors indicating they can feel pain, similar to how mammals respond to injuries.
What behaviors do crickets show when they are in pain?
Crickets stroke and groom a sore antenna, which is a behavior similar to how dogs care for their hurt paws.
How do scientists determine if insects feel pain?
Scientists look for behavioral cues, such as flexible self-protection, to assess whether insects experience pain.
What is the significance of the research on crickets and pain perception?
This research challenges existing views on pain perception in insects and may influence how we understand animal welfare across species.
