It seems BIG fish teach LITTLE fish.
When we catch BIG fish, the
little fish drop out of school
Quote:
Fish Schools – teaching the little tackers how to survive
Reporter: Mark Horstman
Producer: Mark Horstman
Researcher: Holly Trueman, Amy Johnston
Camera: Underwater: Richard Smith
Kevin May, Geoff Lye
Sound: Nick Wood, Richard McDermott
Editor: Ted Otton
Transcript
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12 April 2007
We’ve all heard the story about the goldfish with a three-second memory, rediscovering a brand new world with each lap of its bowl. But behavioural science is challenging this perception of fish as dim-witted swimming robots – with important implications for the conservation of fisheries.
After fifty years of industrial fishing, the United Nations estimates that three quarters of the world’s 400 commercial fish stocks are at risk of collapse.
While fish are the only wild animals that we hunt for food on an industrial scale, very little is known about the ecology and behaviour of most species.
Over the last decade, an undercurrent of research reveals that fish are intelligent social animals that learn from direct experience and by watching how other fish behave.
Using complex communication systems, they enjoy long memories and pass cultural knowledge between generations.
Catalyst visits two young Australian scientists whose work adds new meaning to the idea of ‘schools of fish’.
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Catalyst: Fish Schools – teaching the little tackers how to survive - ABC TV Science
