Trumpetfish use other fish to conceal themselves when hunting in the coral reefs. Apparently, they swim alongside bigger fish to hide before attacking their prey.
Trumpetfish Hides Behind Bigger Fish When Hunting
Human hunters have made hiding an art. They hide their scent, hang out in duck blinds, and wear camouflage. Fish, on the other hand, aren't typically as prepared for hunting unless it's a trumpetfish that lives in coral reefs and is out looking for tasty damselfish.
Scientists have identified a novel strategy trumpetfish use to stalk their prey - they imitate the movements of other fish or swim along a bigger fish to hide.
Sam Matchette, a behavioral ecologist at the University of Cambridge who studies why animals behave as they do, oversaw a trumpetfish study that included a practical field experiment with 3D-printed model fish. The trumpetfish had an intriguing behavior that marine scientists had noted. The long, thin fish frequently swam next to bigger fish, a phenomenon known as "shadowing."
Matchette's 2022 study gathered data from divers to document the behavior and determine where and how frequently it occurred. According to that study, trumpetfish shadowed larger fish in flat, damaged coral reef ecosystems. Matchette and his group were curious about why and the results were released Monday.
According to Matchette in an email to Forbes, the study expanded their knowledge of how predators and prey interact in the wild by providing the first evidence that predators could use other animals as cover. The study illustrated the incredible diversity of how animals could conceal themselves and their intentions.
The crew traveled to the Caribbean, put up a wire, and guided a trumpetfish model that had been meticulously painted through damselfish rookeries. Thirty-six damselfish colonies participated in the trials, which were conducted in three distinct locations. Each colony was exposed to a parrotfish, a trumpetfish, and a pair of both at the same time. Each damselfish colony's reaction was caught on camera.
The damselfish looked at the trumpetfish model while it was by itself, then swam away to safety. To simulate a species that the damselfish didn't view as a threat, the scientists tried this with a parrotfish model. The trumpetfish model was fastened to the side of the parrotfish model for testing the shadowing behavior.
When the models were mixed, the damselfish didn't recognize the threat. This demonstrated the usefulness of the shadowing technique as a hunting cover.
The study was published in Current Biology.
What Is Trumpetfish?
Trumpetfish is any of the three marine fish species found on coral reefs and reef flats in tropical and subtropical seas of the Atlantic, Indian, and Western Pacific oceans that make up the family Aulostomidae (order Gasterosteiformes), per Britannica.
The bodies of trumpetfishes are lengthy, and their stiff, tube-like snouts finish in tiny teeth. While the upper jaw is toothless, the lower jaw and vomer (palate) also have tiny teeth.
Their body is covered with tiny scales, the spines on the back can be raised to defend themselves, and the chin is equipped with a short barbel. They can grow up to 80 cm (31 inches). Trumpetfishes are typical predators on the reef. They eat small fish and crustaceans.
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