Once upon a time a myth was born that insects, unlike animals, are just a machines that not capable of learning and survive only based on their instincts. That myth has become the widespread opinion. Of course, this opinion is indeed erroneous, like many other widespread opinions. Let us try to find out which part is a myth and which part is true.

In this January 31, 2014 file photo released by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), shows residents of the besieged Palestinian camp of Yarmouk, queuing to receive food supplies, in Damascus, Syria. That year, the U.N. was able to deliver food to about five percent of people in besieged areas including Yarmouk, while today estimates show the organization is reaching less than one percent. (Photo by UNRWA via AP Photo)

“The Dragon and The Hopper”. Eyrean earless dragon (Tympanocryptis tetraporophora) standing tall on a very hot rock in western Queensland. For a short time it was joined by a hopper, who jumped off before becoming lunch. (Photo by Harrison Warne/Nature Conservancy Australia 2021 Photo Contest)

Highly commended, mammals: Gelada after the storm – Marco Gaiotti (Italy). “Gelada baboons are the only monkey species in the world that feed on grasses. They are native to the tableland of Ethiopia. Every morning large family groups wander from their sleeping places in the steep rock face, up to 1,000 metres high, to the feeding grounds at the tablelands. This image clearly depicts their feeding strategy: they pull out bunches of grass, sort the stalks and then lift them to their mouth. This shot was taken towards the end of the rainy season after a heavy storm”. (Photo by Marco Gaiotti/2019 GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

An Orangutan named Elze walks in the Biopark of Rio during a media tour in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Thursday, March 18, 2021. The park was closed to the public for renovations to convert the city zoo into a center for biodiversity conservation and will reopen to the general public at the end of March. (Photo by Bruna Prado/AP Photo)

A hungry cow smiles for the camera in Salzburg, Austria. One of a series of funny animal mugshots taken by Chanel Cartell and Stevo Dirnberger during their travels around the globe. (Photo by Chanel Cartell/Stevo Dirnberger/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Cape fox cubs play fight in the last decade of May 2025 in the Kalahari Desert, South Africa, their silver and yellow fur camouflaging them in the desert. (Photo by John Mullineux/Solent News & Photo Agency)