Spot of Understanding - Insects self-medicate

Woolly Bear Caterpillar - Image from National Geographic

If y’all thought we superior humans are the only ones who can medicate ourselves when we suffer injuries, then banish the thought. A team of scientists, led by Michael Singer in the University of Wesleyen, Connecticut, and in the University of Arizona have discovered that the woolly bear caterpillar is the first among insects to self-medicate when sick. These crawlies are prone to falling sick when parasitic flies lay their eggs inside them. And when they do, they simply munch on alkaloid laden plants like the Arizona popcorn flower. They were found to impede the caterpillars’ growth but also improve their overall survival.

Among animals, chimpanzees are known to cure an attack of worms by swallowing rough leaves to unhook the worms from the insides of their stomach. So for insects, who have a ‘less developed central nervous system,’ this is huge.

Read more in NatGeo

The scientifically inclined can read Michael Singer's thesis