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Summer is approaching in the northern hemisphere, heralding the return of that great scourge of al fresco diners everywhere: the wasp.
Now, a new study out of the University of Michigan reveals that the striped critters aren't just pesky -- they're smart.
The research found that wasps can use a form of logical reasoning to infer unknown relationships from known relationships, according to a press release.
Essentially this means they can work out that if is X is greater than Y, and Y is greater than Z, X is greater than Z -- an ability that was thought to be a key human trait for thousands of years.
In recent decades, however, scientists have shown that vertebrate animals such as birds, monkeys and fish also have this ability, known as transitive inference (TI).
And Elizabeth Tibbetts, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Michigan, has found the first evidence of TI in an invertebrate animal -- namely the paper wasp.
Now, a new study out of the University of Michigan reveals that the striped critters aren't just pesky -- they're smart.
The research found that wasps can use a form of logical reasoning to infer unknown relationships from known relationships, according to a press release.
Essentially this means they can work out that if is X is greater than Y, and Y is greater than Z, X is greater than Z -- an ability that was thought to be a key human trait for thousands of years.
In recent decades, however, scientists have shown that vertebrate animals such as birds, monkeys and fish also have this ability, known as transitive inference (TI).
And Elizabeth Tibbetts, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Michigan, has found the first evidence of TI in an invertebrate animal -- namely the paper wasp.
The article continues to explain the difference in how this impacts their societal interactions as compared to honey bees.
