Fishy cooperation( and joining the grouper. Groupers showe...)

The observed role division comes "naturally" to two predators with different hunting specializations, and is therefore far simpler to achieve than for members of the same species. Also, recruitment is quite common in the animal kingdomfor example, primates have specialized signals to solicit each other's support in fights. What is truly spectacular about this study is that the entire interaction patterntwo actors who seemingly know what they are going to do and how this will benefit themis not one we usually associate with fish. This is probably because we tend to develop cognitively demanding accounts for our own behavior and believe that absent the same cognition, the behavior simply cannot take place. It is very well possible, however, that our accounts overestimate the amount of intelligence that goes into complex behavior. Moreover, we have a tendency to underestimate the intelligence of animals at lower rungs of the evolutionary ladder. In fact, it is the ladder idea itself that is wrong. The best way to approach animal intelligence is from an evolutionary and ecological perspective focused on the tasks that each species faces in nature. In this regard, these two reef predators show us that if it comes to survival, highly intelligent solutions are within the reach of animals as different from us as fish. (Watch a grouper signal to a giant moray eel resting in a cave by shaking its head in front of the moray in this video.)

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Contact: Natalie Bouaravong
press@plos.org
415-861-8345
Public Library of Science
4-Dec-2006