The Fish in the Mirror
Image: Alex Jordan/AP
🪞🐟 Fish may be self-aware, according to the results of a study published last week in the peer-reviewed journal PLOS Biology, which follows up on a controversial 2019 study claiming the same thing.
- In both studies, a team of Japanese researchers subjected a type of fish called the cleaner wrasse to a famous experiment known as the mark test (or mirror test).
⚙️ Here’s how it works:
- An artificial mark is placed on an animal while it’s anesthetized in a place where it wouldn’t normally see.
- When the animal comes to, it’s given access to a mirror.
- If the animal inspects the mark on its body, or tries to touch it or remove it, that suggests the animal recognizes itself in the mirror and is self-aware.
📸 The big picture: A handful of mammals and birds have passed the mark test, including magpies, chimpanzees and dolphins. These researchers are the first to claim that a fish has done so, too.
But their initial 2019 study drew pushback from the scientific community, with some suggesting the tests fell short of establishing mirror self-recognition.
- Per the researchers, this updated study was intended to address the critiques of their previous work, and that the new results “increase our confidence” in the initial conclusions.
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