My Goldfish is smarter than your 5th grader

Did you ever keep a Goldfish? They really don’t get enough credit. 

Goldfish learning to drive. Photo: Rosen Zyulun via CNN

A research team at Ben-Gurion University developed a FOV (Fish Operated Vehicle) rigged up with LIDAR, a computer, camera, omni-wheels, and an electric motor that gave Goldfish control of the vehicle. 

Each of 6 Goldfish got 10 driving lessons and when they reached their target they were rewarded with food. 

Just like with humans, some of the fish were better at driving than others. 

Previous studies using a saltwater fish, the Cleaner Wrasse, have shown fish to be self aware, and this study takes fish intelligence a step further.

Fish are able to navigate around in their own environments without any issues, but now we know (at least with Goldfish) that they have the cognitive capability to navigate outside its natural environment! This opens up whole new possibilities for studying the navigational abilities of different animals. 

Work done a few years ago found that Sea Turtles off the coast of Africa were able to navigate back to the beaches of their birth, even after getting way off course, using the equivalent of Sea Turtle GPS. 

What do you think we will learn next? 

If you would like to learn more about the Goldfish study, check out this article link: 

https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/10/world/goldfish-drive-intl-scli-scn/index.html

Hermit Crabs LOOOVE Plastic

What food do you love, but know its not good for you?

Comic of Red Hairy Hermit Crab Talking to a Pencil Urchin

A recently released study by the Hull University in England found the chemical additive, oleamide, which is released from plastic gets crabs excited.

The crabs showed elevated respiration rates (an indicator of excitement) when in the presence of even a small amount of oleamide.

Comic of Marine Hermit Crab talking to Pencil Urchin

While this response could be an indicator of sexual excitement, it is also similar to their feeding response.

When arthropods decompose they release oleic acid, which is very similar to the chemical make up of oleamide that is released by the plastic.

Comic of Crab telling an urchin he gets excited by plastic.

As scavengers, and opportunistic eaters, a crabs food is often comprised of dead, decomposing matter that contains the oleic acid. Since the compound found in plastic is so similar to one of the chemicals in their food, it could explain the crab's positive association with the plastic.

Will bucketlists locations be around by the time we get there?

Image Courtesy of: https://www.needpix.com/search/sand%20bucket

The Great Barrier Reef is having a rough time of things recently. They have been dealing with mass bleaching events, pollution, cyclones, and now they can add rain, and water pollution to that.

Recent rains have caused the Burdekin River to flood its banks and carry muddy run off, that likely contains harmful agricultural chemicals like phosphorous and nitrogen which are known to kill corals, directly into the waters in and around the GBR.

Typically during these rain events, strong winds will push the polluted toxic water further out to sea and keep it from sitting stagnant and concentrated near the reefs, but this time that is not the case.

If that weren’t enough, the reefs are also getting dumped on-literally-thanks to a loophole in the protections surrounding the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. In 2015, the federal goverment banned dredge spoil disposal near the reef, however it only applied to capital dredging, not the maintenance dredging done to keep the shipping channels clear for ships.

Its the maintenance dredging waste that will be dumped near the reef beginning in march, just after all the floods have washed so much run off into the near shore waters.

Dumping isn’t the only option, but it is a cheaper alternative to treating the dredged up material and disposing of it on land. The North Queensland Bulk Port Authority says they have done a peer reviewed dumping plan to determine what is best for the reef. Their risk assessment found the risks to the MPA were very low, with minor short term impacts to benthic habitats.

While I understand that the shipping channels need to stay clear for ships, it seems like there should be a better solution than dumping the dredged waste into the already sensitive ecosystem, and adding to the current mirad of issues. As always, I am hopeful the government, environmentalists, and authorities can work together to come up with a solution that benefits everyone.

Newly Discovered Fish!

Image courtesy of - https://www.vectorstock.com/royalty-free-vector

Lesley de Souza lead author, conservation scientist, and ichthyologist had the honor of describing 6 new species of catfish found in the Amazon and Orinoco River Basins.

The newly discovered fish are all part of the genus commonly known as Bristlenose catfish, just like plecos commonly kept in freshwater aquariums. De Souza described them as having tentacles on their snouts and spines sticking out of their heads.

The purpose of the spines is to help them protect themselves and their nests. The tentacles however, are there to persuade females they will be good Dad’s as the males are the ones who look over the next and guard the fry.

These fish were found in the “clear fast flowing rivers and streams” in Northeastern South America, but there are many species of fish that have yet to be discovered.

Dr. De Souza is excited and hopeful, as “describing a new species is an opportunity for conservation action. For example, Ancistrus kellerae is one of the new species described and is only found in the highlands of Guyana, in one area, likely making it endemic. With the impending threats to its watershed from gold mining, maybe its status as an endemic species will help to protect the ecosystem.”

Anyone can make a difference in their local aquatic ecosystem. Lesley recommends getting involved with local initiatives you are passionate about. She encourages us to make sure we’re familiar with native fauna as well as potential threats to the area, and most importantly, she encourages people to get out and enjoy the rivers and natural areas nearby.

Thank you so much to Dr. Lesley de Souza for sharing your passion about these fish and their ecosystems.

Source - Field Museum. "Six new species of hideously adorable tentacle-nosed catfish discovered in Amazon: Tentacles 'catfish' potential mates into picking the best father." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 6 February 2019. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/02/190206200401.htm>.

Amelia Earhart- Possibly Found?

After being missing for 82 years, Amelia Earhart’s Lockheed Model 10-E Electra plane crash site may have been found off the coast of Buka Island, Papua New Guinea.

Wreckage recovered by divers from Project Blue Angel has led them to believe they have located the plane that belonged to Earhart. They found a piece of glass similar to the that of one of the lights on her plane, however the complete data is still being reviewed by experts.

William Shavely, Project Blue Angel Director was following up on a story heard in the 1930’s from a little boy on Papua New Guinea who “saw a plane- it’s left wing engulfed in flames- crash into the beach.”. As expected, over time the tide would have pulled the wreckage out into the ocean where it became covered in corals. When researchers looked at the last communication from Earhart and Noonan, they found Buka Island to be directly in her flight path.

Amelia’s plane was outfitted with a landing light along with several other modifications for her journey around the world and it is the landing light that got the divers excited. Not only did they find a 6 inch piece of glass similar to what was in her light, but they also found other pieces of wreckage which shared similarities to the modifications on her plane.

While the Blue Angel team is hopeful, they don’t want to jump to conclusions and are waiting for the results to come back from testing.

How do Seahorses Feel About Paparazzi?

What do you do when you see something cool? ⁣ In the diving industry it's not uncommon for divers to use flash photography to capture the unique marine fishes swimming around them.⁣

⁣Up until recently the impacts of fash photography were unknown.  A study just released by Maarten De Brauwer and his colleagues, found that seahorses, in particular, were more impacted by the manipulation surrounding the photo then the flash itself.⁣

⁣Despite the 4,600 exposures to full power flash guns over 34 days there were no observable impacts on sea horse feeding behavior or foraging success.⁣

⁣While the flashes don't impact them we should still be respectful of these animals' environments and avoid harassment.⁣

⁣If you would like to read the whole article it is available to the public here:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-37356-2

De Brauwer, Maarten, et al. "Behavioural and pathomorphological impacts of flash photography on benthic fishes." Scientific Reports 9.1 (2019): 748.

Female Sea Turtles on the Rise...

Temperature plays a key role as sea turtle eggs are incubating in the sand. Sea turtles experience a Temperature-Dependent Sex Determination or TSD. When the sand temperature is warmer around 33 degrees Celsius, the eggs develop into female turtles while slightly cooler temperatures below 28 degrees Celsius, cause the eggs to develop as males.

Scientists predicted that as a global temperatures climbed female turtles would be come the majority. As the numbers of female sea turtles increase there are fears that the girls could have a hard time finding mates, but that's a ways off in the future right?  

Actually its not as far out in the future as you might think. Jensen et al. released a study in 2018 where they looked at populations of green sea turtles in the Northern and Southern parts of the Great Barrier Reef. They found turtles in the Southern area had a population that was 65-69% female. Even further illustrating their point, they found the Northern population to be 87-99% female. Researchers concluded that it was possible the Northern population would be come 100% female in a few years.

So what then? Considered to be a charismatic mega fauna and beloved by many, it is likely that with this trend in skewed sex ratios, we will see the rise of sea turtle hatcheries where temperature (and other factors their success depends on) are able to be regulated.

Curious about Michael Jensen's research paper? It is free and available for your reading pleasure:

https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(17)31539-7 

Bluefin Tuna Breaks Records...

Bluefin tuna are a highly sought after delicacy, especially in Asian markets. At the first auction of the year in Tokyo's new fish market, a Bluefin Tuna broke records, selling for ¥333.6 million ($3.1 million). According to the New York Times, the fish was purchased by Japan's "King of Tuna" Kiyoshi Kimura for his sushi restaurant chain-- Sushi Zanmai.

Bluefins are considered a vulnerable species, especially the Atlantic Bluefin Tuna, which are endangered. The populations have shrunk to less than 3.5% of their historic size and continue to fall due to the pressures of overfishing. Not surprisingly demand continues to increase. Just take a look at the size of and prices paid for Bluefin Tuna between this year and last.

2018- A 892lb Bluefin sold for $323,000
2019- A 612lb Bluefin sold for $3.1 million

Despite this years record tuna weighing 278lb less than last years fish, it sold for nearly $2.8 million less.

What can you do to make a difference? I highly encourage you to make smart choices when ordering and purchasing seafood. For more information about it, be sure to check out:  www.seafoodwatch.org .

Want to learn more about world tuna populations? Check out these websites:
World Wildlife Fund: https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/bluefin-tuna
Pew Charitable Trust: https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/projects/global-tuna-conservation