Natural selection and the hedgehog

[Morphyous]

I wonder what your candidate for a creature which may supercede the intelligence of man might be?

Mine as you have probably gathered is the hedgehog.

 

As a driver I was for years confronted with the crushed bodies of hedgehogs as I drove along my way. I have noticed that there has been a marked decline in these onerous deaths on the roads, in the last few years. Hedgehogs havn't become more fleet of foot or more able to survive the impact of a motor car. I have heard no reports of the rapid decline of these creatures in fact quite a few visit my garden to eat the remains of our cat food.

I can only assume they are better at crossing roads.

 

All the dumb hedgehogs are being knocked over and the brighter ones are surving to breed.

 

Have you got a candidate for a bright creature of the future ? :cup:

[Buffy]

I've always thought that the next successor intelligent species on Earth would be insectoid. Moreover, it might be a "collective" intelligence a la Auntie Hill, the ant colony of Doug Hofstedter. The main advantage they have is that they evolve unbelievably rapidly and reproduce in numbers that make them one of the few phylla that are not doomed by the actions of humans. Dophins and whales of course are already smarter than us, they're just smart enough to realize a good thing when they've got it ("So long, and thanks for all the fish!"): no need for dolphin cars, oceanscrapers or computers, but unfortunately humans are once again making sure they go the way of the Dodo.

 

But why not hedghogs? Are you sure they're not just going extinct? That desire to cross the road in so many mammal species is a guaranteed way to reach extinction.

 

Cheers,

Buffy

[Morphyous]

I've always thought that the next successor intelligent species on Earth would be insectoid.

They are certainly good candidates. I watched a tv programme this week on army ants in Africa. They are awsome predators, completely single minded and ruthless. The locals loved them because they destroyed all the insect life which was attacking their crops. Unfortunately they also attacked their chickens and goats too. If he the farmer arrived too late their method of killing is to invade the lungs and suffocate their prey. They will also attack babies ugh shudder at the thought. :cup:

[TeleMad]

I watched a tv programme this week on army ants in Africa. ...If he the farmer arrived too late their method of killing is to invade the lungs and suffocate their prey.

 

Yes, I believe the ants were called Siafu.

[Morphyous]

Yes, I believe the ants were called Siafu.

Yes, they are,you must have watched the same programme, awsome creatures. :cup:

[TeleMad]

Yes, they are,you must have watched the same programme, awsome creatures. :cup:

 

Yeah. The other ones I remember were Bullet Ants and Jack Jumpers (but I think the latter are a special type of the former).

[Fishteacher73]

There was a discussion that I got in at one point on what actually consisted the organism in colonial insects. Just as some aquatic inverts have done you have groups of individuals that are specialized for specific tasks. Remove one of these "types" and the colony itself suffers. Just as we have recognized that cell-> tissue -> organ-> organ system -> organism. Should we not accept a biological necesity for colonial orgaisms that are more complex? Should the colony be looked at as the entity as opposed to the specific individuals? Is this form of social evolution a spin off of biological evolution?

[tarak]

Colonies of individuals,division of labour,roles and functions in an organization are all part of bettering the prospects of unique possibilities of life.It started somewhere in between when chromophores and chloroplasts and other membrane bound systems and organelles colonized to form the basic units of life,then the euglenoids and volvox like marine forms.Now volvox is like a termite colony more compact and organized.

Its interesting to imagine that some organ in your body detaching and moving out for a particular task.(Like a termite worker moving out and collecting food).Many possibilities exist

[chill]

If I'm not mistaken, our mitochondria used to be part of a separate organism, that's why we got mitochondric DNA. Actually I've read other examples of this; the E. coli in our digestive tract is also basically a separate organism, but as the relationship is beneficial for both sides, the E. coli is basically a part of us.

 

Personally, I think the next intelligent species would have to be a mammal, probably a primate or the dolphin. It's just that there's such a large difference in structural complexity between mammals and other vertebrates and invertebrates. In terms of dominance on the other hand, as in number of individuals per species, insectoids and bacteria would surely be the winner. In fact, it's hard for me to imagine the human race displaced of the possition of intelligent species in the first place, and as long as humans are, it will suppress the evolution of other intelligent species.

[Fishteacher73]

Humans have been able to spread across the globe in vastly different biomes because they are genneralists. Evolution tried a slightly different approach this time (Not that evolution is a plotting force...I was being anthropomorphic, sorry). Instead of refining an organisms ability to thrive in a specific niche, humans do ok in many niches. If humans were forced into just about ANY specific niche, we would be quickly eclipsed by a multitude of organisms that are adapted for that exact niche.

 

The other reasonably intellegent species (cetations, cephalapods, primates, etc.) are more niche defined and require a specific habitat in which to thrive.

 

The second most successful mammal currently on the planet in terms of population size is actually a species of Arctic seal that I cannot recall the name of...I have the source at home.

[IrishEyes]

.....that I cannot recall the name of...I have the source at home.

Sorry, not to get off-topic...

I just LOVE it when someone says this. It reminds me that I can NEVER use this excuse, as my office is my home. Well, I guess I can use it, but that means a trip to Grandma's house...and we all know how those trips end, don't we? I still don't have that darn luggage, and it's been almost two weeks now!!

 

I vote for the dolphin. The ocean is earth's last frontier, right? And besides, those creatures are just amazing... the way they jump through those hoops at SeaWorld shows, and dominate the viewing public at the local aquarium... yeah, any creature that has figured out how to manipulate humans to get a few fish hand-fed to them has got to be pretty high on the 'next-in-line' list if you ask me!

 

btw, I was only being a little fecitious. Dolphins really are quite incredible! But the porpoise...now there's a smart fish for you! :Alien: