Register | Sign In


Understanding through Discussion


EvC Forum active members: 65 (9162 total)
5 online now:
Newest Member: popoi
Post Volume: Total: 915,817 Year: 3,074/9,624 Month: 919/1,588 Week: 102/223 Day: 13/17 Hour: 1/1


Thread  Details

Email This Thread
Newer Topic | Older Topic
  
Author Topic:   Foul Tasting Bugs
InGodITrust
Member (Idle past 1669 days)
Posts: 53
From: Reno, Nevada, USA
Joined: 05-02-2009


Message 1 of 2 (550359)
03-15-2010 3:44 AM


There are a number of species of insects that use a foul taste for defense. I watched part of a TV program recently that showed one such species with a baby alligator as a predator. The narrator said that after the alligator eats a couple of the bugs, it will learn its lesson and eat no more. Altough the scene may have been staged for TV, they showed the 'gator killing one of the bugs.
Obviously the defense is good for the species as a whole, but how did natural selection come into play in the development of the foul taste, if a couple bugs are killed before the predator learns its lesson? The foulest tasting bug has no better chance of survivng to pass on its genes than any of the other bugs.
I'm sure biologists have contemplated this and written about it. Maybe it's even been discussed here at EVC before. But I haven't come across the answer yet. Who has plausible speculation?
Edited by InGodITrust, : spelling

Admin
Director
Posts: 12998
From: EvC Forum
Joined: 06-14-2002
Member Rating: 2.3


Message 2 of 2 (550373)
03-15-2010 9:27 AM


Thread Copied to Biological Evolution Forum
Thread copied to the Foul Tasting Bugs thread in the Biological Evolution forum, this copy of the thread has been closed.

Newer Topic | Older Topic
Jump to:


Copyright 2001-2023 by EvC Forum, All Rights Reserved

™ Version 4.2
Innovative software from Qwixotic © 2024