Best memories of your fish

[elephantnose3334]

I'm curious because fish are interesting creatures. What are three of your best (favourite) memories of your fish? How do fish recognise people? How do I make my tetras recognise me more?

 

[MattW3344]

A few years back I had a female betta in my old tank that sat on my desk next to the computer. I'm an avid football fan and watch many games at my desk as did the Betta. But whenever the nerite snail blocked her view she'd go mad

 

[GaryE]

There is debate about whether very small tetras see you as one large lumpish thing, or a series of lumps. I have never seen you, but even the smallest human is enormous to a tetra, and of no practical interest to one. If they realize you are watching them, they get nervous. In time they adjust and probably interpret us as a non dangerous herbivore thing ("Hey ed. There's a Pacu with hair on its head over there"). Fundamentally though, we watch them. They rarely watch us except as a threat or a food source. They look at us, but.
Even feeding responses may come from reading our vibrations as we walk. When I enter my fishroom, most small fish are unbothered. When friends come in, the fish are hiding before the unknown humans have come into view. It's a running joke that I have invisible fish, or fish only I can see.
Other fish groups are very aware of us. Solitary predators pay attention, and can make visual contact, or so it seems. Cichlids can be aware, as can Anabantoids. Some individuals in some species that really depend on their eyes can become kind of tame.

I have broken up Cichlid fights with hand gestures, but my hands were moved like large fish challenging them. They got it. But did they get that my hands were connected to the rest of me? I don't know.

You've used that "fish" word again though. There are so many different types of eyes involved you can't make a general statement. Some fish don't even have eyes. We have so much to learn about how their brains work.