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Whats The Memory Span Of A Siamese Fighting Fish2007-11-24 23:42:44

Don't feed it for three days and then approach its tank. It will 'remember' that you're it's food provider and anticipate a feeding session even though 72hrs passed. Just check out its behavior.

Some 'intelligent' fish like certain cichlids and puffers (among others) can recognize their owners/feeders from strangers. That requires retaining memory of specific humans.

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how do would you test the memory of a fish

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fish are dumb, this is why i am trying to start a new species, the underwater bunny. my experiments have failed up to now.

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It really depend on by what you mean by memory. In general people tend to anthropmorphize fish way to much. A fish has a tiny brain and most of what it does is instinct, and conditioning. A fish will react to a given stimulus (event) for several seconds (2-8) then continnue it's normal behavior. For example a betta exposed to a mirror will go about it's normal behavior a few second 3-5 after the mirror is removed.

Betta like most fish can be conditioned. Most fish owner claim that that their fish recognize them, and know it's time for them to be fed. Betta owner often claim their betta learn to beg. Again this is anthropomizing the fish. They can be conditioned. My fish in the main tank are condition when someone approaches the tank to swim to the surface on the left hand side of the tank. (Careful observation reveals they doing this for anyone.) My males will flutter back and forth if someone passes them in the hall. (I use to not feed them in the morning, but when I see them do this I tend to feed them then, and there. Of course then I forget, and feed them again.) So they do in a sense remember things that happen repeatily.

An experinced fish keeper knows both elements of fish memory and trains his/her fish to come to the surface when they put in a finger and gently wiggle. (Do right before feeding.) Now when they want to net a fish. Stick the net in. Count to 5. Stick your other finger in and ring the dinner bell. Bring the net under the fish. My problem is trying not to get extra fish.

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Actually, I'm pretty sure that a goldfish has a memory of three MONTHS. And the beta fish has about the same length of time, though their feeding time and other such actions (if it's a daily routine, done all at. say, 4:00 PM,) is burned into their memories.