Can insects knock themselves out?

Hi Deb - I recently read that due to the size of their brains scientists have great difficulty telling the level and type of function their brains have.

Something about not being able to stick electrodes in to detect neural activity.

Now I am wondering what happens when WE knock ourselves out!

What is "losing consciousness" really all about?

Hmmm - one needs a reasonably big brain to be knocked out, you think?

What an interesting question. Big is relative, I've seen mice knocked out (or stunned). Hmmm. Hope someone knows.

Do insects sleep?

First thing I thought of
...Sometimes you're the windshield
Sometimes you're the bug.

Interesting ideas. Can one stun oneself? What is the state of being stunned?

I think I have some information relating to your original question, dlowan.

When I was a kid, we used to catch flies in our hands (you would have to slowly sneak up on the unsuspecting little beast as he sat perched on a flat surface, and then scoop him into your hand quickly) and then we would shake the little bugger up in our hand, and throw him/her as hard as we could against a wall.

The fly would fall to the ground, unconscious, and then after several seconds of laying there, it would eventually start to move again, and after that, it was only a matter of a few seconds before it would fly off again.

I don't know about other insects, but the conclusion that I have come to from these oh so scientific experiments is that, yes, insects can be knocked out. Whether they can knock themselves out is something I can only speculate on, but I believe it must be possible.

Oh dear!!!

Sure they weren't playing possum?

Still - cruel - but interesting...

Actually, I have rescued ants from water - and they have been absolutely unmoving for a few minutes - then got up and run off....hmmmmmmm

We also used to put bees underwater to try to drown them...and they would also seem to be unconscious for a brief period of time before slowly regaining mobility.

Cruel? Of course! But I was just a kid! And if I hadn't done all these things, we wouldn't have all this empirical evidence, now would we?

Can insects knock themselves out? Absolutely, if they dress fabuously.

bees are souls of the damned...along with cats...don't feel bad Kicky....

Just try to drown a water strider.

Cats...I wonder if they can be knocked out. I'll be back, I have to go get a hammer and try something out...

Cats can be drowned. In fact, it was common practice in medieval times. Just tie them up in a burlap sack and toss 'em in the river. No need to knock 'em out.

You people are coming back as male spiders....

And if you don't already know what happens to THEM, I will tell you...

Depends on the spider...species, that is.

The RIGHT spider species.....

Black Widows, for instance...

Insects go dormant in a sort of hibernation.

Dlowan, I'm with you on arachnid power.

Coulda been a praying mantis...

I think the bee/ant thing with water is more related to the way they breathe, ie they don't have lungs, they get air through pores in their bodies, so when wet they are essentially suffocating, so maybe they 'wait' for the water to evaporate enough for them to breathe again and move.