Do Fish Recognize Former Tankmates?

[Big E]

Based on the OP's specific question I think it comes down to the time frame you're talking about. In my repsonse I was referring to a separation of 3-6 months.

I'm sure they are capable of recognition/memory for days & maybe a few weeks. After that I doubt they have the mental capacity for long term memory.

 

[JSeymour]

I don't think it's a memory of former tank mates that triggers the same response of the fish as before but the actual disposition or "personality". for lack of a better term, that allow the fish to get along or not.

Put another way, the species traits & personality of say a butterfly & tang made them compatible in a specific environment. Even though they are separated for a time, the personalities of the fish don't change so they become compatible again due to the "give & take" that make up these two fish.

Another pair of the same exact species may not get along the same way because they are made up differently & the give & take aren't quite the same.

I know the written text can be read wrong, so I'll start out with, I'm not upset, just curious.

How would you explain the situation I recalled on? Where two fish from different genera sexually paired up(I have pics of offspring, bigger than the parents) for the sole purpose of passing on their genes. One of them is then separated, paired up and bred to a larger much more powerful male(he was gentle with her) of the same species. Then when these three fish ended up in the same tank, among others, the original hybrid pair joined back up pretty much immediately, without the typical aggressive courtship behavior that can last for days to weeks. The tank was new to all three involved.

This odd pairing doesn't make sense from many stand points. A suitable partner of the same species was present and available. The suitable partner was larger and stronger then the other species male, but also not a "wife-beater", thus a better candidate for breeding. Her genetics and her brain should have told her to stay with the same species male, but she quickly, against all instincts and the lack of any real courtship, re-paired up with a different species male.

To me, it's obvious she could remember something about this particular individual, that in her experience made him a better partner.

 

[Big E]

Hi Jason,

I'm just voicing my opinion based on my experiences just as you are. You say it's memory & I say it's compatibility. There are probably many signals fish give off that we aren't even aware are being communicated. I think your situation supports what I'm saying..........those two fish fit together for probably many reasons no one can explain.

There are also some genetic connections as they are both cichlids. You're also speaking of breeding drives of freshwater cichlids & I'm talking about two totally unconnected marine fish...............apples & oranges.

As a interesting side note, I had a Salvini & a Texas cichlid pair up & breed in my old freswater days.

 

[fender4string]

When I was doing a lot of research on picasso triggers before I bought one there was a user on here that told me of his experiences with his. He said that the picasso recognized him and that when the freezer was opened and a certain container was brought out it meant food. He tried a few experiments where he would watch the fish and go the the refrigerator-no response. Go to the freezer-excietment. Use the normal feed dish-excitement. Use a new feed dish-no response. He also said that the fish wouldn't approach other people the same way it would himself. For example, he had his brother try and get the fish to come to the glass and it wouldn't because, presumably, it knew it wasn't it's owner (i.e. it recognized the difference).

Anyway what I'm getting at is if this fish was able to tell the difference between these types of fairly abstract things why wouldn't it be able to recognize it's tank mates even if separated?

Just my .02! Thought that was pretty interesting and this is a topic I've wondered about many times.

 

[waldomas]

When I was doing a lot of research on picasso triggers before I bought one there was a user on here that told me of his experiences with his. He said that the picasso recognized him and that when the freezer was opened and a certain container was brought out it meant food. He tried a few experiments where he would watch the fish and go the the refrigerator-no response. Go to the freezer-excietment. Use the normal feed dish-excitement. Use a new feed dish-no response. He also said that the fish wouldn't approach other people the same way it would himself. For example, he had his brother try and get the fish to come to the glass and it wouldn't because, presumably, it knew it wasn't it's owner (i.e. it recognized the difference).

Anyway what I'm getting at is if this fish was able to tell the difference between these types of fairly abstract things why wouldn't it be able to recognize it's tank mates even if separated?

Just my .02! Thought that was pretty interesting and this is a topic I've wondered about many times.

I couldn't agree more!

 

[Big E]

I did a few searches on fish memory & came up with this..............interesting stuff. This first link has some tests done with clown fish near the end of the article.......... that's the most relevant to this discussion.

http://www.howfishbehave.ca/pdf/Long-term memory.pdf

http://www.fishinghurts.com/feat/fishlives/

I'm not sure there have been any true controlled tests past 3 months. The lines can get a little blurred between what's memory & in-grained from genetics & evolution.

 

[Cerebral Fish]

If fish don't have memory I don't see how we'd be able to train them to eat unnatural foods.