What do you think?
Rate this book
Watching Fishes: Understanding Coral Reef Fish Behavior
Discusses the marine ecology of coral reefs, looks at the way fish move, feed, see and smell, reproduce, and camouflage themselves, and investigates their social life, territoriality, and symbiosis
274 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 1985
1 person is currently reading
8 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
February 15, 2017
When diving on the coral reefs, one sees a wide variety of fishes but their interactions and other fishes is not obvious. The Wilsons discuss the lives of the various fishes showing how they live on the coral reef.
Divers rarely see one fish eat another as most piscivores are active at dawn and dusk, while most dives are done during the day with some at night. Eating habits include the grazers such as the wrasse that find small invertebrates on the bottom or on other fish (cleaners), and the parrotfishes that harvest coral and grind it in their pharyngeal mill to eat the algae and animals within. The hunters either pursue their prey such as the jacks and snappers, or lay in wait as do the groupers, moray eels, flounders and frogfish. Plankton eaters such as damselfishes and cardinalfishes have fine gill rakers for straining the water.
Fishes can hear with both their ears and their lateral lines. Noises are made in a variety of ways, and are used in courtship and defense of territory. Electroreception is used by the sharks. While fishes can smell and taste with their mouth and with other bodies cells, such as a catfishes whiskers, the two senses affect different parts of the brain. Taste and smell are important in hunting and in social interaction. Unlike most mammals, fishes have color vision as it is important in both hunting and social interaction.
While some fishes use color and patterns for camouflage and mimicry as in the trumpetfish, many reef fishes are brightly colored (termed poster colors by Konrad Lorenz). The colors of some fishes, especially the wrasses and parrotfishes, change over their various life stages - being hermaphrodites they change sex over their lives. While the role of color is important in camouflage and social interaction, the significance of all the poster colored fishes is not known. Lorenz postulated territoriality as a general purpose, but it turns out that many of the territorial fishes are not brightly colored.
As most coral reef fishes are pelagic spawners, sending their eggs into the open ocean away from the many egg consumers on the reef, mating is governed by the time of day, effect of the moon on tides and on direction of current. Various species rush to the surface or travel to the fore-reef to spawn. Some, such as damselfishes, triggerfishes, gobies and blennies, lay their eggs on the bottom where they tended by the adults prior to hatching and movement into the plankton. Groupers, sergeant majors, bluehead wrasse and yellowtail parrotfish migrate in groups to the reef edges to mate and spawn. Angelfishes, butterflyfishes, lionfishes and anemonefishes are pair spawners. Cardinalfishes, and some jawfishes and catfishes, are mouth breeders. Harlequin bass, sequential hermaphrodites, have both male and female organs allowing them to have sex in either role, often in the same mating session. Wrasses, parrotfishes, some anemonefishes and some angelfishes are sequential hermaphrodites, starting out as either male or female juveniles but some individuals changing sex later in life.
Fish often school, a system that provides greater protection against predators, eases the energy cost of swimming, and can aid in hunting for food. Some fish organize as colonies, the group often being the harem of a male. Some fishes, notably butterflyfishes and angelfishes, form male-female pairs.
Many fish are territorial, the threespot damselfishes being an example of the algae farmers as they patrol the boundaries of their territory and engage any interlopers. While it seems odd that the smaller fish are often the most aggressive, it is because they are defending algal farms. Other reasons for territories are closeness to a well used hiding place, and to form a specific spot for reproduction. The garibali creates a nest that is carefully maintained over much of the fishes life.
There are many examples of symbiosis where two species live together in a mutually beneficial manner. The anemonefishes derive protection and some food from anemones, although the benefit to the anemone seems to be minor protection against anemone eating fishes. Other fishes and invertebrates are symbionts with urchins, sponges and corals. Cleaners, often shrimp and wrasses, eat the parasites on other fish once they pose to show that they are ready.
Sharks get their own chapter as they have many characteristics different from the teleosts, or bony fishes. Their skeleton is cartilaginous and they have no swim bladder, needing to swim almost continuously to stay off the bottom and to pass water by their gills. Specialization has occurred in the senses to allow them to forage in the relatively empty open ocean.
Invertebrates must deal with the fact that they are prized in the diet of so many fishes. Camouflage, sensors, poisons, shells and spiky projections all factor into their defenses. Tubeworms, basket stars, octopus and cuttlefish are described. Crinoids are noted for their diversity and the number of commensals: small animals that hide on the crinoids. Certain corals harbor pistol shrimp and crabs that attack crown-of-thorns starfish.
An excellent chapter describes the fishes that are active an night, during the day, and in the transition (crepuscular) period.
This is a terrific book that describes many of the less obvious habits of the reef fishes. It is worth a read before one's next dive trip.
Divers rarely see one fish eat another as most piscivores are active at dawn and dusk, while most dives are done during the day with some at night. Eating habits include the grazers such as the wrasse that find small invertebrates on the bottom or on other fish (cleaners), and the parrotfishes that harvest coral and grind it in their pharyngeal mill to eat the algae and animals within. The hunters either pursue their prey such as the jacks and snappers, or lay in wait as do the groupers, moray eels, flounders and frogfish. Plankton eaters such as damselfishes and cardinalfishes have fine gill rakers for straining the water.
Fishes can hear with both their ears and their lateral lines. Noises are made in a variety of ways, and are used in courtship and defense of territory. Electroreception is used by the sharks. While fishes can smell and taste with their mouth and with other bodies cells, such as a catfishes whiskers, the two senses affect different parts of the brain. Taste and smell are important in hunting and in social interaction. Unlike most mammals, fishes have color vision as it is important in both hunting and social interaction.
While some fishes use color and patterns for camouflage and mimicry as in the trumpetfish, many reef fishes are brightly colored (termed poster colors by Konrad Lorenz). The colors of some fishes, especially the wrasses and parrotfishes, change over their various life stages - being hermaphrodites they change sex over their lives. While the role of color is important in camouflage and social interaction, the significance of all the poster colored fishes is not known. Lorenz postulated territoriality as a general purpose, but it turns out that many of the territorial fishes are not brightly colored.
As most coral reef fishes are pelagic spawners, sending their eggs into the open ocean away from the many egg consumers on the reef, mating is governed by the time of day, effect of the moon on tides and on direction of current. Various species rush to the surface or travel to the fore-reef to spawn. Some, such as damselfishes, triggerfishes, gobies and blennies, lay their eggs on the bottom where they tended by the adults prior to hatching and movement into the plankton. Groupers, sergeant majors, bluehead wrasse and yellowtail parrotfish migrate in groups to the reef edges to mate and spawn. Angelfishes, butterflyfishes, lionfishes and anemonefishes are pair spawners. Cardinalfishes, and some jawfishes and catfishes, are mouth breeders. Harlequin bass, sequential hermaphrodites, have both male and female organs allowing them to have sex in either role, often in the same mating session. Wrasses, parrotfishes, some anemonefishes and some angelfishes are sequential hermaphrodites, starting out as either male or female juveniles but some individuals changing sex later in life.
Fish often school, a system that provides greater protection against predators, eases the energy cost of swimming, and can aid in hunting for food. Some fish organize as colonies, the group often being the harem of a male. Some fishes, notably butterflyfishes and angelfishes, form male-female pairs.
Many fish are territorial, the threespot damselfishes being an example of the algae farmers as they patrol the boundaries of their territory and engage any interlopers. While it seems odd that the smaller fish are often the most aggressive, it is because they are defending algal farms. Other reasons for territories are closeness to a well used hiding place, and to form a specific spot for reproduction. The garibali creates a nest that is carefully maintained over much of the fishes life.
There are many examples of symbiosis where two species live together in a mutually beneficial manner. The anemonefishes derive protection and some food from anemones, although the benefit to the anemone seems to be minor protection against anemone eating fishes. Other fishes and invertebrates are symbionts with urchins, sponges and corals. Cleaners, often shrimp and wrasses, eat the parasites on other fish once they pose to show that they are ready.
Sharks get their own chapter as they have many characteristics different from the teleosts, or bony fishes. Their skeleton is cartilaginous and they have no swim bladder, needing to swim almost continuously to stay off the bottom and to pass water by their gills. Specialization has occurred in the senses to allow them to forage in the relatively empty open ocean.
Invertebrates must deal with the fact that they are prized in the diet of so many fishes. Camouflage, sensors, poisons, shells and spiky projections all factor into their defenses. Tubeworms, basket stars, octopus and cuttlefish are described. Crinoids are noted for their diversity and the number of commensals: small animals that hide on the crinoids. Certain corals harbor pistol shrimp and crabs that attack crown-of-thorns starfish.
An excellent chapter describes the fishes that are active an night, during the day, and in the transition (crepuscular) period.
This is a terrific book that describes many of the less obvious habits of the reef fishes. It is worth a read before one's next dive trip.
Displaying 1 of 1 review