Do Insects Have Brains?

For a long time many leading scientist were under the impression that bugs did not have brains. This is because it was often observed that insects could literally lose their heads while still retaining the ability to crawl.

We know now that insects indeed do have brains, but perhaps not like you imagine. In humans the brain is centralized in the cranium, but in insects the brain or brains are located throughout the body. These different points throughout the insect body are known as ganglia, and this is why many insects can still crawl despite losing its head.

It is the brain of an insect, located throughout its central nervous system, that allows it to choose proper mates, navigate large areas and hunt for proper nourishment. Despite the fact that the insect brain is composed very differently than a humans brain there are still some similarities. For example, insects use their sense of smell through their antennae and the part of the brain that processes smell, the olfactory region, appears almost exactly like a humans. If you look hard enough you can find similarities between all of natures animals.

Have you ever seen an insect crawling around without a head?