https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/your-book-review-the-mind-of-a-bee
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So for decades, scientists assumed that bees could not differentiate squares and triangles, because in their experimental paradigms where they asked bees to look at squares and triangles, there was no downside. Bees just blitzed the test to get that sweet, sweet sucrose. Once penalties were introduced for mistakes, bees started performing much better and could easily differentiate squares and triangles.
This illuminates one large problem with measuring cognition in vertebrates and invertebrates. If an animal can't do something in one test, it tells you a lot more about that test than the animals' generalised skillset.
