This Cuttlefish Passed A Cognitive Test For Children

Hey, animals are smart too! This cuttlefish proves the intelligence of non-human species by passing a new version of a cognitive test. The marshmallow test, a cognitive test designed for children, was adjusted to test a cuttlefish’s intelligence, as ScienceAlert details: 

A child is placed in a room with a marshmallow. They are told if they can manage not to eat the marshmallow for 15 minutes, they'll get a second marshmallow, and be allowed to eat both.

This ability to delay gratification demonstrates cognitive abilities such as future planning, and it was originally conducted to study how human cognition develops; specifically, at what age a human is smart enough to delay gratification if it means a better outcome later.

However, the cuttlefish isn’t the first animal to pass the test of delayed gratification! Other animals have also been trained and were able to pass the test: 

Because it's so simple, it can be adjusted for animals. Obviously you can't tell an animal they'll get a better reward if they wait, but you can train them to understand that better food is coming if they don't eat the food in front of them straight away.

Some primates can delay gratification, along with dogs, albeit inconsistently. Corvids, too, have passed the marshmallow test.

Image via ScienceAlert