PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Tilman Triphan
AU  - Wolf Huetteroth
TI  - Seeking voluntary passive movement in flies is play-like behavior
AID  - 10.1101/2023.08.03.551880
DP  - 2023 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 2023.08.03.551880
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2023/08/04/2023.08.03.551880.1.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2023/08/04/2023.08.03.551880.1.full
AB  - Play-like behaviour (PLB) is pervasive across the animal kingdom, especially in vertebrate species. Invertebrate PLB has been restricted to social or object interaction. Here we examined individual PLB in the vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster by providing voluntary access to a spinning platform – a carousel. We demonstrate that flies exhibit idiosyncratic carousel interactions that qualify as play-like behaviour. While some flies show spontaneous avoidance, others actively seek stimulation, engaging in repeated, prolonged visits to the carousel. We propose that flies voluntarily expose themselves to external forces to intentionally receive exafferent stimulation. Self stimulation provides an efficient way to improve self-perception via internal model training and can shape multisensory integration.One-Sentence Summary Vinegar flies seek passive movement.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.