Tiny fruit flies use cold hard logic to select mates

Fruit flies — the tiny insects that swarm our kitchens over the summer months — exhibit rational decision making when selecting mates, according to new research. Scientists observed different combinations of fruit flies mate about 2,700 times, and were surprised to discover that male flies almost always pick the female mate that would produce the most offspring. The study provides the first evidence that fruit flies are capable of making rational choices.