The Hidden Lives of Fish

Dr. Sylvia Earle, one of the world's leading marine biologists, said,

Scientists are starting to learn more and more about our finned friends, and their discoveries are fascinating.

Fish and Fisheries cited more than 500 research papers on fish intelligence, proving that fish are smart, that they can use tools, and that they have impressive long-term memories and sophisticated social structures. The introduction said that fish are "steeped in social intelligence … exhibiting stable cultural traditions and cooperating to inspect predators and catch food."

Culum Brown, a University of Edinburgh biologist who is studying the evolution of cognition in fish, says, 

Their long-term memories help fish keep track of complex social relationships. Their spatial memory—"equal in all respects to any other vertebrate"—allows them to create cognitive maps that guide them through their watery homes, using cues such as polarized light, sounds, odors, and visual landmarks.

Dr. Theresa Burt de Perera of Oxford University says,

A report in the U.K.'s Sunday Telegraph further supported this claim:

Furthermore, a scientific review presented to the Australian Veterinary Association completely disproved the myth that goldfish have three-second memories; instead, the veterinarians found that goldfish have impressive memories and problem-solving abilities. One of the researchers said that after conducting the review, they wanted "to get the message out to vets to start looking more closely at fish and considering their welfare like they do other animals."

More Fascinating Fish Facts

• Fish talk to each other with squeaks, squeals, and other low-frequency sounds that humans can hear only with special instruments.
• Fish like physical contact with other fish and often gently rub against one another—like a cat weaving in and out of your legs.
• Dr. Phil Gee, a psychologist from the University of Plymouth in the U.K., trained fish to collect food by pressing a lever at specific times, demonstrating their ability to tell time.
• Some fish tend well-kept gardens, encouraging the growth of tasty algae and weeding out the types they don't like.
• Like birds, many fish build nests where they raise their babies; others collect little rocks off the seafloor to make hiding places where they can rest.
• Some fish woo potential partners by singing to them, but male sand gobies, tiny fish who live along the European coast, play "Mr. Mom," building and guarding nests and fanning the eggs with their fins to create a current of fresh, oxygenated water.
• Fish are interesting and intelligent animals and deserve the same respect we give to cute and cuddly animals such as dogs and cats.

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