This Amazing Fruit Fly Evolved to Have Pictures of Ants on its Wings

reply to post by jjkenobi


Yeah, I noticed that too. But since you said something, I don't have to.

That seems so unlikely for evolution.
Random pigment until after millions of years Ants?
I don't think we have the whole intelligent design
vs Evolution thing worked out completely.
I have a feeling it's much more complicated than
both ideas put together.

ChuckNasty
reply to post by SonOfTheLawOfOne

 

Animals will devlope to mimick and deter their predators. Been happening forever! It is natures way.


Silly example:

Dumb example I know - but I didn't know of specific insect examples.. My bad.

That wasn't silly, that was
AWESOME !!

Aleister
reply to post by SonOfTheLawOfOne

 

Yeah, that's kind of a stupid adaptation. More likely to get eaten, but maybe birds and other insect eaters think the "ants" are unappetizing and keep away from what they perceive as a group of three. Since the insect has survived, it must be a defense of some kind. Doesn't even look real, but you vouch for it. A strange looking insect though.

But smaller critters won't have a visual system as complex as ours. The order of complexity roughly: perception of light/dark, movement, silhouette shapes, colour (blue/yellow, UV, red/green), and texture. Since these wing patterns are brown (red + green), you're looking at something like a bird or spider. Ants don't have very good vision, and they can be deterred through false pheromones alone.

A jumping spider might try and go for one of the wings. By the time it was in flight, the fly would know what direction it was coming from and buzz away.

reply to post by winofiend


So basically it is just a Rorschach test for insects? Awesomeness.

Mimic !! funny how nature seems to be !! pattern resembling Ants on wings ??

how about !! a large insect (looking like a cross between a termite and a praying mantis) mimicking a Human LOL!!

Mimic (film)
en.wikipedia.org...(film)

beerandamovie.files.wordpress.com...

reply to post by FlySolo


The intelligence is not on the DNA but in the predators that have eaten the less artistic flys (or other source of intelligence that boost that trait, even the female flys ).

reply to post by SonOfTheLawOfOne


I don't see how this just happens. There is some type of intelligence behind it. Something that thought it was a good idea.

jjkenobi
I see a lot of people using the word "Evolve" in this thread as if it's interchangeable with "Adaptation".

I don't see the words being mutually exclusive. Evolve, or Evolution being the object, and the methods being attrition (adaptation, natural selection) and design (a built-in methodical goal). The latter being highly unsupported in academic discussions, however it could be that both of these methods are at work at the same time. We certainly have not figured either of them out satisfactorily to declare that we know how evolution works.

It's like a walking stick or bug that looks just like a leaf.
A lot seems to be involved, not just one reason.
A lot more is at work here, I guess this is why we continue to ask questions.

I always wanted to go to exotic place's ,until I started to hear of such things as the dreaded, South American Kissing Bug. Scuba all of that, there are some strange things out there, like that weird Blue eyed dog thing, out Texas way, I think.

Or those darn Ear wick's, then it lay's eggs in persons Brain, or those zombie snails.

You know how ant's work, they gather, take it back to the nest, let's the Queen know what's cooking. But maybe it allows the fruit fly to lay eggs and not be seen as, more food. You know back on topic of ant's on wings.
But anyhow, I was feeding ant's honey one time for kick's, I would put honey on window ledge, the ant's would come and fill up and leave. After awhile I noticed the ant's coming had developed like a fuel tank to carry more honey back. The Queen musts of thought to make different style worker for food source. I was hoping they could break me out, but I got caught and wrote up for having ant's on my window ledge.

Or look how the Honey Bee's can make the Queen lay more Queen's I think by shape of egg chamber and what is fed. Royal Jelly?

One book I read talked about changing the Eggs in humans, by the food source, they had a book " Left in the Dark" , This guy was way out there, he stayed awake for 11 days (which would kill some people). He caused his brain to change hemispheres he was like different person. He was attempting to force a human gene factor to come back to being active. I wrote the author, he never responded back in regards to my input.

reply to post by luciddream


My thoughts exactly.

and with the whole how does it 'know' to do so? well, if you get eaten you ain't handing down your genes. This is why we have Giraffe beetles and such that make no sense (to us, at least). But the world is strange, these species survive. Why? because, brah, why not hey, my china

reply to post by SonOfTheLawOfOne


This is good evidence that a greater intelligence exists.


How could nature know that putting a picture of an ant on its wings will help with survival? Look at how realistic it looks. This is too great to be a coincidence in my opinion.

ItCameFromOuterSpace
reply to post by SonOfTheLawOfOne

 

I don't see how this just happens. There is some type of intelligence behind it. Something that thought it was a good idea.

Not really. Their early ancestors could have had different patterns, those patterns may have been some random splotch that didn't offer as much in camouflage, then one happened to have the mutation that caused the spider/ant and as a result it was left alone and went on to get laid. In time the ant gene could win out over the less effective patterns and it could be by complete chance.

That fly in the picture was probably chosen as a good example I bet they are not always so anty. I notice that some people in these comments also think they look like spiders. My take on it they are just blobs. This is an example of humans seeing something from nothing. It is our nature to try to make sense of things that are around us and sometimes we make a connection between things that isn't there .

reply to post by SonOfTheLawOfOne


I fail to see how this makes this critter any more fit to survive over a fly without the ant design. Seems to me if its wings were attacked instead of its head it would just mean a slower death. I don't think it would interact with ants using visual stimuli, so where in the world does this adaptation come from?

That's pretty cool, never seen one up close before.

reply to post by SonOfTheLawOfOne


First I seen of that insect, if it is real is sure in the hell didn't "Evolve", it is designed.

A fruit fly eating insect may not take an ant, and so it may deter predation.

Yes its a pretty non useful adaptation, having ant shaped spots on its wings would jut make it more susceptible and noticeable to predators who eat both ants and flys. Its like having a double target painted on you, even if a predator goes for the wings mistaking it for ants, the fruit fly is still likely trapped, or left without wings. In all I do not think this particular adaptation has anything much to do with avoiding predators, in fact it may be something to attract them.

Which would make more sense in a way as many insects and animals have developed such tactics even to this extreme to attract and either feed or even infect or even lay its eggs in them. I dont think any ants would be attracted to pictures as they dont really have that good of a vision, so I dont think this adaptation is to attract ants, but maybe something which is attracted by ants, or maybe as a way to blend in so as to avoid predators which would feed on fruitflies only. Who knows, its cool but there are more bizarre critter adaptations out there.