Smart and Spineless: Exploring Invertebrate Intelligence

When you think of smart animals, what comes to mind? Wise old owls? Problem-solving dolphins? Maybe you have heard of Koko the gorilla, who has mastered one thousand signs in American Sign Language, or Chaser the border collie, who recognizes one thousand names for her stuffed toys.

But what about ants building megacolonies or bees reporting to the hive about new nesting sites? What about escape artist octopuses and jellyfish that use their eyes (they have twenty-four!) to navigate? Are insects, spiders, and other animals without backbones considered smart, too?

When we think of intelligent creatures, we often think of vertebrates, or animals with spinal columns and relatively large brains. We don't usually think of invertebrates, or animals without a spine. But invertebrates can be astonishingly intelligent. These animals exhibit surprising feats of learning, memory, and problem-solving using their relatively simple, tiny brains—some the size of a sesame seed or even smaller. In fact, some intelligent invertebrates have no brain at all!

Scientists around the world are putting invertebrate intelligence to use in mind-boggling ways. Engineers are designing swarmbots based on bees to take part in search-and-rescue efforts. And materials scientists are basing a new, tough ceramic on the structure of a mantis shrimp's claw. In Smart and Spineless, readers will be challenged to think in a whole new way about what it means to be smart!

"The lack of a spine, or even a brain, doesn't keep invertebrates from learning, remembering, and solving problems. Defining intelligence as 'the ability to benefit and learn from experience and to apply that information to new situations, ' the author of Elephant Talk (2011) provides fascinating examples of mindfulness, memory, and learning in a wide variety of invertebrates from earthworms to dragonflies and spider wasps. She includes chapters on jumping spiders, octopuses, honey bees and paper wasps, Argentine ants, mantis shrimps, box jellyfish and slime molds. Text boxes set off on yellow backgrounds offer fast facts about each species described and clear explanations of complicated concepts. Readers accustomed to the smooth storyline of narrative nonfiction may find Downer's exposition demanding, but this fact-filled text has intriguing examples and surprising, memorable details. Picture Darwin's family gathered together to play music to earthworms; slime molds mapping the best routes between U.S. urban areas; using the sound of a file on a wooden stake to attract fish bait (a method called 'worm grunting'); experimenters playing tug of war with octopuses unwilling to give up their LEGO blocks. Ample backmatter supports the information, making this an ideal starting place for research on any one of these species. Science facts more surprising than science fiction for teen readers."―Kirkus Reviews

"Invertebrates of all stripes are given fully researched attention here. Downer examines the intelligence of a variety of animals: worms, slime molds, bees, spiders, ants, shrimp, and jellyfish. This slim volume is superficially deceptive: though crowded with full-color photographs, drawings, charts and side boxes, it's intended for an older audience than it would seem at first glance. However, the text is still accessible. The importance of scientific experiments and data is emphasized. Readers will discover that bees can learn to associate an abstract symbol with a sweet-tasting reward or a bitter-tasting punishment. Charles Darwin realized that earthworms were expert soil engineers with the ability to navigate their world through trial and error. Animal behaviorists believe that octopuses have personalities. The female tarantula hawk wasp can analyze surroundings and compare size and volume when hunting her prey. Extensive back matter makes this title perfect for research. VERDICT: Downer does a fine job revealing the intelligence of the spineless creatures that make up more than 90 percent of animals on Earth."--School Library Journal

"When people think of brainpower in terms of brain size, they tend to overlook 90-percent of Earth's animal life. From worms and octopuses to jellyfish and slime molds, Downer makes a compelling case for the intelligence of spineless creatures, based on evidence of abstract thought, learning, memory, and problem-solving. In one example, two scientists release Portia, a predatory jumping spider, in an Australian rain forest near a prey spider's web. Ready to observe how it navigates the web, they are disappointed when it simply walks away. But as they pack up their equipment, they notice Portia rappelling down a silk line from a vine above the other spider and killing it without touching the web. With its poppy-seed-sized brain, the predator spider carried out a strategy that the scientists hadn't considered. Going beyond the intelligence of individual animals, Downer describes intriguing details of social behavior that demonstrate the collective intelligence of Argentine ants, honey bees, and paper wasps living in colonies. Lucid and well organized, the writing grips readers with a combination of facts and related narrative accounts of scientists at work. Clear, color photos illustrate the main text and the many sidebars, which often highlight related research projects. A fascinating book for science fans."--starred, Booklist