Don’t reach for the bug spray: crickets stroke a sore antenna, as cues suggest insects feel pain

The behavioural cue of flexible self-protection' is a way to establish whether an animal feels pain, scientists say

• Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton's free Clear Air newsletter here

• Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast

Do insects feel pain? Crickets certainly seem to, according to new research which finds they stroke and groom a sore antenna in much the same way as a dog nurses its hurt paw.

Associate Prof Thomas White, an entomologist from the University of Sydney, said the experience of pain was a longer, drawn-out, ouchy feeling", that differed from a hardwired nerve response.

Sign up to get climate and environment editor Adam Morton's Clear Air column as a free newsletter