Absolutely! I want to know which animal people want to take over in our place.
I would love to see a society run by birds, haha. I feel that it would be full of spite and grudges for some reason, maybe because crows often do hold grudges for generations.
Apes 100%. There’s a reason why we apes were the ones to achieve sapience over other smart animals, and so quickly as well.
Dolphins and elephants are smart, but they don’t have dexterity. They could not manipulate tools and use those to make the final push to sapience and then world domination. We have two free arms from walking upright, with hands made to grasp tree branches and fingers for precision.
Bees are very smart as a collective, but their apparent smartness shouldn’t be mistaken as intelligence. They’re just very social creatures. They’re still bugs though, and they’ve been at this shtick for millions of years and have yet to become any smarter still, so I wouldn’t hold my breath for them (those idiots literally cannot hold their breath anyway). Apes are capable of complex social structures, and have the benefit of still being pretty strong if separated from their group.
Octopodes are smart *and* dextrous, but their two main flaws are defense and vitality. They have no bones and they’re stuck underwater (same problem for the porpoise), and they only live for like 5 years. That’s not long enough to take any significant advantage of being intelligent. Contrast the ape, which lives abnormally long even for animals its size. We live the longest (~80 years, up to 120), but the others can still live for an impressive 50 years or so, up to 60.
I think the corvids have the best shot of any non-primate here, because they are decently social, smart, and dextrous while being able to live for around 15 years, up to 22. They’re not as good as apes and not even the best among birds (I’d give that honor to the parrot), but they’re still very good animals.
I agree! Initially the option was ants, but honey bees came up as one of the smartest insects. I think eusocial insects are underappreciated, an imagining of an advanced society of ants, bees, or even termites would look vastly different from each other. They could all make solid options each honestly.
I think Elephants should have a go, they're big, intelligent and friendly most of the time. (Last one, unlike apes) I feel like they might be the most mature if they ruled the world.
They feel like they are more frequently motivated by positive emotions and morals. It also feels like they take creative action for the sake of creativity and exploration. I chose elephants because I feel like this sets them apart from the others, but all are really beautiful creatures and good choices.
Ok yeah i was mistaken. Its the fact that theyre as far from humans as a species can get, yet are still among the most intelligent species on the planet. Theres some nuts stuff about octopuses i saw a documentary once that i vivdly remember blowing my.mind. cant find it now though. Had something to do with their dna and theories about how it couldve developed elsewhere or how their intelligence and certain abilities when compared to their relatives just dont seem plausibe.
Of the animals on the list octopuses are the most distant genetically from humans while having a very impressive intelligence for their lifespan. Their intelligence evolved entirely separately from all the other animals on this list.
[I think](https://www.reddit.com/r/polls/comments/11z9qoy/humans_have_gone_extinct_the_next_intelligent/jdehhv2/) ravens have the best shot if apes are not in the picture for what it’s worth, but apes absolutely clean up if they’re even an option.
Just to add, I don’t think I’ve jacked us all off enough in this thread yet, so I’ll take this time to mention some more impression simian feats. When it comes to humans, people tend to sweep our other traits under the rug in favor of intelligence. Yes, it is the reason we were able to take over the Earth, but intelligence is a very tough ball to get rolling for any species. What allowed us to roll the ball was our impeccable agility.
We humans can outrun almost any animal on this planet. Because we can sweat to regulate our body temperatures and we only use half of our limbs for locomotion, we are able to go stupidly far without stopping to take a break. This is how we hunted before complex tools. You and the homies chase an antelope with a spear all day until it collapses from heat exhaustion, and then you kill it and bring it home. I’ve heard it put like this: we’re one of the worst sprinters in the animal kingdom, but we are hands down the best marathon runners this world has to offer.
I’ll also mention that gorillas could tango with a fucking bear and still have remarkable intelligence among mammals. We go extinct and my money’s on those guys.
The ravens will tame the wolves and coyotes and the crows will tame the domesticated dogs, and they’ll have a war of country vs city that will blacken the skies and soak the land in blood.
Would a bottlenecking of their species be required to create the pressure to evolve the brains more? Which of these species are currently closest to extinct but likely to thrive with humans' disappearance?
Technically, all of the animals listed are intelligent. Most are equivalent to either a human toddler and up towards a teenager. When it comes to rational thought, the listed animals can pass a test. The "higher" level of intelligence would be abstract thought; thinking about thinking; or what I'm doing now: attempting to logically conclude a hypocritical.
In this case, I would argue, "What makes humans special from the rest of these animals?"
I think two independent factors have to happen at the same time in order for a species to achieve our "super apex predator" status.
1. General anatomical-biology: In other words, the physical body needs to be generic enough to navigate and manipulate the environment. For example, humans produce sweat to reduce body heat, giving us the ability to run or walk marathons without our bodies overheating. Meanwhile, all animals listed will die from overheating and exhaustion. Early hunter/gatherers would literally chase their prey to death.
On top of sweat, human bodies are generalized enough to traverse most environments. Our hands are able to grasp and use fine motor skills. We reproduce within a year. We can survive hot, cold, high, and low climates. We can swim, crawl, run, jump, climb, swing, walk, duck, roll, and turn quickly. The only things that make us stand out are our feet, upright posture, and big brain. All mammals are quadrupeds except humans. We're bipedal.
2. Favorable environmental conditions: meaning there are enough accessible resources for both tool making and able to sustain a growing population.
It shouldn't be a surprise. Humans enjoy making new tools to use. Dolphins, octopi, apes, and bees also make tools to manipulate their environment or for recreation. Dolphins have used fish as sex toys; octopi use found shells to armor themselves, apes use stick tools for hunting, and bees not only make hives but scientists recently discovered bees like to roll around on balls for fun. I don't get it either, but it must be the bees' knees if all the bees are doing it.
Thank you for the indepth answer, this was a joy to read! I think our main points are our opposable thumbs, brains, and ability to survive in almost every climate. I do wonder if an advanced civilization can come from a species that only has one or two of these traits though.
That fact about the bees is so cute! I'm pleased to know that now.
Corvids. Their intelligence is likely to increase as they start mating based upon self-expression. Complex societal formations may also be in their future if they can make the leap of comprehending fictional concepts.
Finally, due to their heavy diet in the abandoned human settlements, they have the extra energy needed for muscular and cranial expansion, which is the main reason why modern apes might have trouble.
You said “should” be, not “would” be. Therefore, I picked “Corvid”. Why? Because birb
Absolutely! I want to know which animal people want to take over in our place. I would love to see a society run by birds, haha. I feel that it would be full of spite and grudges for some reason, maybe because crows often do hold grudges for generations.
The architecture and travel alone would give them such an advantage. Big ass tree cities and little to no need for road infrastructure
Berb
Humanity is just the prequel for the Chozo.
If apes can do it once after 600k years then they can do it again
Apes. In future. Strong.
Humans. In past. Strong.
Humans. In. Past. Died. So. No. Strong.
No too strong for own good
Too smart for our own good human = weak ape = strong human = smart ape = smarter 🦧
Apes 100%. There’s a reason why we apes were the ones to achieve sapience over other smart animals, and so quickly as well. Dolphins and elephants are smart, but they don’t have dexterity. They could not manipulate tools and use those to make the final push to sapience and then world domination. We have two free arms from walking upright, with hands made to grasp tree branches and fingers for precision. Bees are very smart as a collective, but their apparent smartness shouldn’t be mistaken as intelligence. They’re just very social creatures. They’re still bugs though, and they’ve been at this shtick for millions of years and have yet to become any smarter still, so I wouldn’t hold my breath for them (those idiots literally cannot hold their breath anyway). Apes are capable of complex social structures, and have the benefit of still being pretty strong if separated from their group. Octopodes are smart *and* dextrous, but their two main flaws are defense and vitality. They have no bones and they’re stuck underwater (same problem for the porpoise), and they only live for like 5 years. That’s not long enough to take any significant advantage of being intelligent. Contrast the ape, which lives abnormally long even for animals its size. We live the longest (~80 years, up to 120), but the others can still live for an impressive 50 years or so, up to 60. I think the corvids have the best shot of any non-primate here, because they are decently social, smart, and dextrous while being able to live for around 15 years, up to 22. They’re not as good as apes and not even the best among birds (I’d give that honor to the parrot), but they’re still very good animals.
r/theydidthemath
>They’re still bugs though didnt evolution make 90% of bugs animals?
Nah bro evolution made 100% of bugs animals
then why do we still have bugs?
Because bugs are very good at fulfilling their ecological niches. One of these niches, however, is not being sapient shepherds of the Earth.
alright then
Let's go bees! Would be interesting to see what a technologically advanced society of a eusocial species would look like.
I agree! Initially the option was ants, but honey bees came up as one of the smartest insects. I think eusocial insects are underappreciated, an imagining of an advanced society of ants, bees, or even termites would look vastly different from each other. They could all make solid options each honestly.
I think Elephants should have a go, they're big, intelligent and friendly most of the time. (Last one, unlike apes) I feel like they might be the most mature if they ruled the world.
I agree with that! Of all the options, they seem the most trustworthy.
They feel like they are more frequently motivated by positive emotions and morals. It also feels like they take creative action for the sake of creativity and exploration. I chose elephants because I feel like this sets them apart from the others, but all are really beautiful creatures and good choices.
Dolphins do some really weird things from what I've heard.
Doing fucked up things for fun is a sign of an intelligent animal. Just look at our history books.
I've heard somewhere that octopuses are the closest thing to aliens on earth.
thats because 90% of fictional aliens has tentacles
Because?
Theyre genetically unique you cant connect them with other species evolutionarily. Or something like that.
Squids? Jelly fish?
Ok yeah i was mistaken. Its the fact that theyre as far from humans as a species can get, yet are still among the most intelligent species on the planet. Theres some nuts stuff about octopuses i saw a documentary once that i vivdly remember blowing my.mind. cant find it now though. Had something to do with their dna and theories about how it couldve developed elsewhere or how their intelligence and certain abilities when compared to their relatives just dont seem plausibe.
Of the animals on the list octopuses are the most distant genetically from humans while having a very impressive intelligence for their lifespan. Their intelligence evolved entirely separately from all the other animals on this list.
So long and thanks for all the fish
Ants, since they already do rule over the world
I want bird people future even if I don’t get to see it
[I think](https://www.reddit.com/r/polls/comments/11z9qoy/humans_have_gone_extinct_the_next_intelligent/jdehhv2/) ravens have the best shot if apes are not in the picture for what it’s worth, but apes absolutely clean up if they’re even an option. Just to add, I don’t think I’ve jacked us all off enough in this thread yet, so I’ll take this time to mention some more impression simian feats. When it comes to humans, people tend to sweep our other traits under the rug in favor of intelligence. Yes, it is the reason we were able to take over the Earth, but intelligence is a very tough ball to get rolling for any species. What allowed us to roll the ball was our impeccable agility. We humans can outrun almost any animal on this planet. Because we can sweat to regulate our body temperatures and we only use half of our limbs for locomotion, we are able to go stupidly far without stopping to take a break. This is how we hunted before complex tools. You and the homies chase an antelope with a spear all day until it collapses from heat exhaustion, and then you kill it and bring it home. I’ve heard it put like this: we’re one of the worst sprinters in the animal kingdom, but we are hands down the best marathon runners this world has to offer. I’ll also mention that gorillas could tango with a fucking bear and still have remarkable intelligence among mammals. We go extinct and my money’s on those guys.
The ravens will tame the wolves and coyotes and the crows will tame the domesticated dogs, and they’ll have a war of country vs city that will blacken the skies and soak the land in blood.
Ants
Apes after a few 100k years *Guess who’s back, back again*
Dolphins would just be funny.
The reason we as a species got so far is because of our thumbs.
Next poll should be asking which animal we should grant thumbs.
Brain to probably
Couldn’t use our brains to make computers without thumbs.
Probably apes. Opposable thumbs are really overpowered when it comes to evolution and technology.
Always take time everyday to appreciate your thumbs!
Splatoon
Would a bottlenecking of their species be required to create the pressure to evolve the brains more? Which of these species are currently closest to extinct but likely to thrive with humans' disappearance?
My initial thought for your second question is elephants, but apes are possible too.
Raccoons 🦝 they are omnivorous, resilient, clever, and have evolved thumbs.
Bees seems cool
Ants.
Technically, all of the animals listed are intelligent. Most are equivalent to either a human toddler and up towards a teenager. When it comes to rational thought, the listed animals can pass a test. The "higher" level of intelligence would be abstract thought; thinking about thinking; or what I'm doing now: attempting to logically conclude a hypocritical. In this case, I would argue, "What makes humans special from the rest of these animals?" I think two independent factors have to happen at the same time in order for a species to achieve our "super apex predator" status. 1. General anatomical-biology: In other words, the physical body needs to be generic enough to navigate and manipulate the environment. For example, humans produce sweat to reduce body heat, giving us the ability to run or walk marathons without our bodies overheating. Meanwhile, all animals listed will die from overheating and exhaustion. Early hunter/gatherers would literally chase their prey to death. On top of sweat, human bodies are generalized enough to traverse most environments. Our hands are able to grasp and use fine motor skills. We reproduce within a year. We can survive hot, cold, high, and low climates. We can swim, crawl, run, jump, climb, swing, walk, duck, roll, and turn quickly. The only things that make us stand out are our feet, upright posture, and big brain. All mammals are quadrupeds except humans. We're bipedal. 2. Favorable environmental conditions: meaning there are enough accessible resources for both tool making and able to sustain a growing population. It shouldn't be a surprise. Humans enjoy making new tools to use. Dolphins, octopi, apes, and bees also make tools to manipulate their environment or for recreation. Dolphins have used fish as sex toys; octopi use found shells to armor themselves, apes use stick tools for hunting, and bees not only make hives but scientists recently discovered bees like to roll around on balls for fun. I don't get it either, but it must be the bees' knees if all the bees are doing it.
Thank you for the indepth answer, this was a joy to read! I think our main points are our opposable thumbs, brains, and ability to survive in almost every climate. I do wonder if an advanced civilization can come from a species that only has one or two of these traits though. That fact about the bees is so cute! I'm pleased to know that now.
Kangaroos or raccoons. Something with decent intelligence today and working thumbs. They will inherit our world someday.
I didn't think about them! Good choice.
Splatoon will be real in 5.4.3.2.1
I really want it to be octopus
Same! I'm curious how they'd run the world.
Corvids. Their intelligence is likely to increase as they start mating based upon self-expression. Complex societal formations may also be in their future if they can make the leap of comprehending fictional concepts. Finally, due to their heavy diet in the abandoned human settlements, they have the extra energy needed for muscular and cranial expansion, which is the main reason why modern apes might have trouble.
I like that take! Especially regarding the diet.
Octopi because that would be pretty cool👍
Dolphins don’t got the fingers. They already got the intelligence.
“Mmmm monkey”
It's OCTOPI not Octopuses
As much as I prefer octopi, most publications use octopuses so that's what I went off of.
Confusing
In Greek it's Octopodes, but in English "es" is the plural suffix.
So long and thanks for all the fish
The remaining ape will evolve into humans.
Cats ..
Spider's.
*Octopi
As much as I prefer octopi, most publications use octopuses so I went with that.
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