Talk:Portia (spider)/Archives/2023/December

Behavior

 * Just how this animal with its tiny central nervous system has learned this complex repertoire of predatory behavior has stumped scientists for years.

I don't think the thing with the complex repertoire is unique for this genus. Lots of species of this size show complex behavior. I think some of these days I'll delete this sentence. --Sarefo 11:38, 4 July 2006 (UTC)


 * Ok, maybe you're right after all :) --Sarefo 08:12, 27 July 2006 (UTC)

The article suggests initially that the spider is somewhat intelligent and then midway it states that they're slow thinkers...Make up your mind, folks...76.10.138.112 (talk) 08:39, 24 July 2010 (UTC)

Slow as in time spent thinking, not as a euphemism to mean unintelligent, as we sometimes use it to describe people. I read that paragraph to mean they are running complex and "intelligent" software, but only have an old 486 to run it on. Like if you got close enough you could hear a HDD being thrashed to bits inside them. Another way to think about it is it's like running the latest version of iOS/Android, with its intelligent voice activated assistant, but on a very old model of phone where it takes a long time to respond. It would ultimately and eventually come up with the same answer as what the most modern device would in turn offer you in an instant. So Portia can come up with an intelligent solution, but she is slow to process it due to her limited hardware speed. She is not Intelligent but ""slow"". EeekiE (talk) 08:49, 29 September 2016 (UTC)

N.B. Linda Rayor of Cornell University states on Discovery Channel's Monster Bug Wars that "the Portia is considered to be the smartest of all spiders".


 * Portia is the best studied jumping spider when it comes to intelligence, but there is evidence for high intelligence, if not equal to Portia's, in other jumping spiders. Here's a video of a non-Portia (not sure what species it is) that clearly can plan:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H1CY-wstJKU — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2001:678:F0:1080:E95B:129D:703B:A136 (talk) 18:26, 27 August 2016 (UTC)

Picture needed
This article needs a picture of a Portia. RobertAustin 11:41, 13 April 2007 (UTC)

Lifespan and observational learning
I am guessing, in order to benefit from learning effectively, they tend to live a long time.

I am also wondering if there is any evidence of observational learning.--Jrm2007 (talk) 21:49, 21 September 2014 (UTC)

Pluck
Apparently, in one of David Attenborough's shows, it says that the Portia spider can pluck some webs and make a string pluck sound. Qwertyxp2000 (talk) 22:27, 18 January 2015 (UTC)