Cuttlefish found to have similar self-control abilities to humans

Cuttlefish are fast learners and can exercise self-control in the same way large-brained animals, such as parrots and crows, can, according to new research. The study – published this week in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B – saw scientists use an adapted version of the Stanford marshmallow test to test if cuttlefish were able to wait for a better meal rather than take food immediately in front of them. Scientists also found that fishes able to wait scored better in a learning test, which examined cognitive performance by training cuttlefish to associate visual cues with a food reward. Dr Alex Schnell, a comparative psychologist at the University of Cambridge and lead author of the paper, said: “Cuttlefish spend most of their time camouflaging, sitting and waiting, punctuated by brief periods of foraging. We speculate that delayed gratification may have evolved as a by-product of this, so the cuttlefish can optimise foraging by waiting to choose better quality food.” Dr Schnell and Roger Hanlon, a leading expert in cephalopod behaviour and joint senior author of the study, concluded that the identified link between self-control and learning performance was a major breakthrough.