One fish , two Pisces , red fish , blue fish ; in oecumenical , all fish of a specie seem the same to humans . amazingly , however , research shows that the individuals in at least once species of Pisces have no trouble telling each other apart . harmonise to experimentation undertaken by researchers at the University of Queensland , Australia , the Ambon demoiselle , orPomacentrus ambionensis , possesses the capacity for facial realization — ordinary among humans , but unique and undiscovered in Pisces the Fishes until now .
latterly presented at anacademic conferencein Australia , the enquiry , led by marine scientist Ulrike Siebeck , builds on Siebeck ’s own prior probe into the demoiselle ’s ability to recognise the form of ultraviolet patterns that make out one fish species from another . A2010 experimentfound that the damselfish relied on its ultraviolet light ( UV ) ken to determine which particular metal money of fish was intruding on its territory , and thereby whether or not that particular Pisces ’s comportment necessitate an attack . When the damselfish were prevented from recognizing the intruding fish ’s UV facial practice , they were efficaciously blinded , unable to identify their preferred prey .
This new study find that the demoiselle is capable of even more nuanced facial recognition than previously thought , involving not just making distinctions between different species , but between single fish as well . Captive damselfish were trained to realise a given UV facial pattern , reinforced by a food reward . When show with the familiar boldness and a unusual new face , the Ambon demoiselle were able to identify the correct fish case with 75 per centum accuracy , a pattern that contain true even when the face were those of a similar but dissimilar species , the lemon tree demoiselle .
The Ambon demoiselle was even capable to recognize the same face when it was blended with other picture of Pisces the Fishes face to create totally new image , demonstrating a truly impressive sense of feature recognition — and all base on figure of ultraviolet illumination Inner Light unseeable to the human eye .
While it may seem like a restriction of the demoiselle ’s ability that its pattern recognition relies solely on ultraviolet patterns , rather than facial topography or other strong-arm identifying features , it is really a feature that may serve them hold up in the coral reefs of the Western Pacific Ocean . Just as the human researchers were unable to see the ultraviolet patterns their subjects saw without technical aid , the demoiselle ’s predators are UV unsighted . In this manner , the demoiselle ’s ultraviolet sight occasion as a world power of sort , so that their facial patterns and the ability to distinguish them allow the damselfish to “ communicate secretly,”Siebeck theorizes .
[ h / tNational Geographic ]
