Schooling Fish

[Pl*co]

I've always wondered whether fish can recongize one species of fish from another. and i was thinking, they must because schooling fish always school with their own kind. even if you had two similiar species together in a tank, like several cardinal tetras and several neon tetras, they'd be able to tell the difference, wouldn't they?

 

[Ludwig Venter]

I've always wondered whether fish can recongize one species of fish from another. and i was thinking, they must because schooling fish always school with their own kind. even if you had two similiar species together in a tank, like several cardinal tetras and several neon tetras, they'd be able to tell the difference, wouldn't they?

Certainly they do...

 

[Hawkins]

I wonder if they can see their bodies?? lol

 

[Ludwig Venter]

I wonder if they can see their bodies?? lol

Yea... I think it is basically the shape they recognise.... On many occassions, I've kept a single fish of a species & it goes along on it's daily routines, but when I get another of the same species (after 8 months or a year), he/she does respond to the newcomer..... I think he says "hello", & when he hears "hello" right back at him,..... it's a reunion....

 

[england]

someones going to come and tell you its shoaling and even then thats used lightly and not actually schooling

 

[andywg]

Schooling certainly appears to be based on visual references as most schools disband into shoals at night. Tests with blinded fish also support the vision being important belief. Obviously fish will school with their own species as the idea is to not give the predator any actual target they can see other than a continuous flashing of scales.

As noted above: a shoal is a group of fish together (what we have in our tanks), a school is an amorphous mass of fish appearing to move as one organism. It is quite possible for fish to shoal in a multi species group.

If you are an insomniac then this thread may be of interest

 

[saz326]

I've often wondered whether than reconising the shapes/colours/even smells of certain tankmates, they might go simply with favourites.....

So they're not looking to shoal with other blue striped red eyed fish - they simply see something they like and stick next to it. I guess that is what instinct is - staying where you feel comfortable.

..it explains why cories seem to stick together, whatever the colouration/length.