If you have ever owned a goldfish, you might think that these animals are not really that smart. However, in open waters, fish have to act in certain ways to find food and to prevent becoming food themselves. For example, some fish will swim in giant schools to confuse predators. Another example is whenever an octopus goes hunting for its own food, there are many fish found swimming around it to be able to eat anything left behind! However, it turns out that fish can be a lot smarter than you’d think. Keep on reading and discover more about the relationship between a group of fish and an octopus!
Octopuses and Fish hunt in teams
Fish following octopuses has been normal for a while. Scientists believed that the fish were just following the other animal to catch anything it missed from its food. New studies have shown that it is actually way more complex than that, as it turns out that the fish play an active role in the hunting process helping the octopus reach more prey!
Scientists have discovered that octopuses off the southern coast of Israel and fish will work together to locate and reach the prey. The fish will locate the food and report back to the octopus. Then the octopus, the brain behind the timing of the hunt decides when and how they’ll move. It is beneficial for both parties as one can reach underneath rocks and into small holes to get to the prey and the other can locate the prey more easily. Whatever doesn’t get eaten by the octopus is then a free game for the fish.
Lazy Fish Get Wacked
It is normal that not everyone in a group will put in the same amount of effort. We have all had that one team member who does less. This can be frustrating since you can’t really do anything about it. Well, this is not the case for octopuses who hunt with fish!
If the octopus decides that one of the fish is not pulling its weight or doing enough to help the hunt, then a quick punch from one of the tentacles will be the way that the octopus addresses the fish.
