What advice would animals give to humans for a fulfilling life?
Rainforest ecologist and PhD student Robin Hayward asked his fellow biologists on Twitter to share the best advice from the species that they study using the hashtag #AdviceFromNature.
Biology twitter! What’s your study species’ #AdviceFromNature? I think we could all do with seeing some accurate but terrible advice on this hashtag ? https://t.co/26uShdeJZq
— Robin Hayward (@CanopyRobin) April 28, 2018
The replies will teach you some odd things about animals.
Power naps are key
— ◤◢ PK ◤◢ (@featheredstuff) April 29, 2018
Yeast has some solid advice on dealing with enemies and friends
Yeast. #AdviceFromNature1/ Travel far by tricking flies to eat you https://t.co/5fABuEZZni2/ Turn food into wine to kill your enemies https://t.co/EUKZxk17MD3/ When everything is gone, hug your friends https://t.co/0K5CJktpZG https://t.co/lwoloNmCVC
— Ben Schulz (@bnschlz) April 29, 2018
It seems lobsters live in the Hunger Games
#AdviceFromNature What I’ve learned from lobster:– everything wants to kill you, hide to survive– cannibalism is okay– when fighting for dominance, piss in you opponents face– kill!– being an aggressive jerk is the key to survival when you are delicious.#BeTheLobster https://t.co/Fyf2aD5v4T
— Travis Nielsen (@AzurigenMCS) April 28, 2018
Advice from an Antarctic penguin:?Always return home, irrespective of flood, potential collapse, food avail.?Never be a leader, you might die.? Use your neighbours resources to better your own home.?Loud flirting is ?.?Pooping everywhere is fine.#AdviceFromNature https://t.co/L3iSPCCTh0
— The Gonzo Scientist (@GonzoScientist1) April 29, 2018
Bats seem to have life figured out
#AdviceFromNature Bats: Sleep in all day. Eat your bodyweight in food each night. Spend your time screaming so loud that no-one else can even hear you. Have the most acrobatic sex possible. ? Most importantly, always help a friend out if they need it ? #altruism
— Livvy ? (@croppley) April 28, 2018
If you work together to support people (organisms) vastly different to you, everybody will benefit, fighting stress and disease together.
Then they will grow big and strong, and you can live inside them. #endophytes #AdviceFromNature https://t.co/pNiol2eO0K
— Gareth Raynes (@FrndlyBacteria) April 29, 2018
Snails are a bit problematic – take their advice with a pinch of salt
#AdviceFromNature from snails ?: – take your time, you’ll get there– stab and chemically manipulate your partners to get babies at their expense (hmmm…)– in case of problems, stay in your shell and wait, problem will go away eventually https://t.co/v9j6KFxQAb
— Maxime Dahirel (@mdahirel) April 28, 2018
Drosophila: if you feel a bit poorly, head for the strongest booze you can find and drink till it kills the disease
— Tom Price (@TomARPrice) April 29, 2018
From tiny creatures to large ones, sticking together is a theme
#AdviceFromNature courtesy of #elephants:– be nosey ?– ladies: stick together! ?– with age comes wisdom (so listen to granny) ? https://t.co/KZdY741Nqj
— Vicky Boult (@vlboult) April 30, 2018
Birds encourage you to take a gap yah
Birds:-why face your problems (ie, the looming darkness of winter) when you can run away to another hemisphere instead-you’re at your most attractive when singing LOUDLY at 4 AM-embrace your inner therapod #AdviceFromNature
— Jessica McLaughlin (@jfmclaughlin92) April 28, 2018
On the theme of running away from your problems, ground squirrels advise you to sleep
#AdviceFromNature from ground squirrels:– Binge eating is encouraged– The thicc-er, the better– When times get tough, just go to sleep for 6 months until things get better pic.twitter.com/XTjoVWfxkG
— Edna Chiang (@EdnaChiang) April 29, 2018
… so do bears
Bear advice for a happy life:
Pig out. Sleep for awhile. Repeat. #AdviceFromNature https://t.co/HEYHOXx6WE
— Sky Stevens (@sky_lepidus) April 28, 2018
