Aquatic+Schools

Aquatic Schools Many species of fish, particularly smaller fish, travel in schools, moving in tight formations, often with the precision of the most highly disciplined military unit on parade. Some move in synchronized hordes, while others move in <range type="comment" id="565574767_9">starkly</range id="565574767_9"> geometric forms. These may take the shape, for example, of <range type="comment" id="565574767_10">wedges</range id="565574767_10">, triangles, <range type="comment" id="565574767_11">spheres</range id="565574767_11">, or <range type="comment" id="565574767_12">ovals</range id="565574767_12">.<range type="comment" id="565574767_13"> In addition to the varieties of shapes of schools of fish</range id="565574767_13">, there are <range type="comment" id="565574767_14">countless</range id="565574767_14"> varieties of<range type="comment" id="565849795_1"> schooling behaviors</range id="565849795_1">. Some fish <range type="comment" id="565849795_2">coalesce</range id="565849795_2"> into schools and then<range type="comment" id="565849795_3"> spread out </range id="565849795_3">in <range type="comment" id="565849795_4">random</range id="565849795_4"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_5">patterns</range id="565849795_5">, while others move into close formations at specific times, such as <range type="comment" id="565849795_6">feeding</range id="565849795_6"> times, but are more <range type="comment" id="565849795_7">spread out</range id="565849795_7"> at other times. <range type="comment" id="565849795_8">Some move in schools composed of members of all age groups</range id="565849795_8">, <range type="comment" id="565849795_9">while</range id="565849795_9"> others move in schools <range type="comment" id="565849795_10">predominantly</range id="565849795_10"> when they are <range type="comment" id="565849795_11">young</range id="565849795_11"> but <range type="comment" id="565849795_12">take up </range id="565849795_12">a <range type="comment" id="565849795_13">more solitary existence</range id="565849795_13"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_14">as they mature</range id="565849795_14">. <range type="comment" id="565849795_15">Though</range id="565849795_15"> this behavior is <range type="comment" id="565849795_16">quite</range id="565849795_16"> a <range type="comment" id="565849795_17">regular, familiar phenomenon,</range id="565849795_17"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_18">there is much that is not completely known about it,</range id="565849795_18"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_19">particularly</range id="565849795_19"> the <range type="comment" id="565849795_20">exact</range id="565849795_20"> function that it <range type="comment" id="565849795_21">serves</range id="565849795_21"><range type="comment" id="565849795_22"> and what mechanisms fish use to make it happen.</range id="565849795_22"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_23">Numerous hypotheses </range id="565849795_23">have been <range type="comment" id="565849795_24">proposed</range id="565849795_24"> and tested <range type="comment" id="565849795_25">concerning the purpose of schooling behavior in fish</range id="565849795_25">. <range type="comment" id="565849795_26">Schooling</range id="565849795_26"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_27">certainly</range id="565849795_27"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_28">promotes</range id="565849795_28"> the <range type="comment" id="565849795_29">survival</range id="565849795_29"> of the <range type="comment" id="565849795_30">species</range id="565849795_30"> but questions <range type="comment" id="565849795_31">arise</range id="565849795_31"><range type="comment" id="565849795_32"> as to the way the schooling</range id="565849795_32"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_33">enables</range id="565849795_33"> fish to have a better chance of surviving. Certainly, the fact that fish <range type="comment" id="565849795_34">congregate together in schools</range id="565849795_34"> helps to <range type="comment" id="565849795_35">ensure</range id="565849795_35"> their survival in that schooling <range type="comment" id="565849795_36">provides</range id="565849795_36"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_37">numerous</range id="565849795_37"> types of <range type="comment" id="565849795_38">protection</range id="565849795_38"><range type="comment" id="565849795_39"> for the members </range id="565849795_39">of the school. One form of protection <range type="comment" id="565849795_40">derives from</range id="565849795_40"> the <range type="comment" id="565849795_41">sheer</range id="565849795_41"> numbers in the school. When a <range type="comment" id="565849795_42">predator</range id="565849795_42"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_43">attacks</range id="565849795_43"> a school <range type="comment" id="565849795_44">containing</range id="565849795_44"> a <range type="comment" id="565849795_45">huge</range id="565849795_45"> number of fish, the predator will be able to <range type="comment" id="565849795_46">consume</range id="565849795_46"> only a small percentage of the school. <range type="comment" id="565849795_47">Whereas</range id="565849795_47"> some of the members of the school will be lost to the predator, the <range type="comment" id="565849795_48">majority</range id="565849795_48"> of the school will be able to survive. Another form of <range type="comment" id="565849795_49">protection</range id="565849795_49"> comes from the special <range type="comment" id="565849795_50">coloration</range id="565849795_50"> and <range type="comment" id="565849795_51">markings</range id="565849795_51"> of different types of fish. <range type="comment" id="565849795_52">Certain</range id="565849795_52"> types of coloration or markings such as <range type="comment" id="565849795_53">stripes </range id="565849795_53">or patterns in <range type="comment" id="565849795_54">vibrant</range id="565849795_54"> and <range type="comment" id="565849795_55">shiny</range id="565849795_55"> colors create a visual effect <range type="comment" id="565849795_56">when huge numbers of the fish are clustered together,</range id="565849795_56"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_57">making it more difficult for a potential predator to focus</range id="565849795_57"> on specific members of the school. A <range type="comment" id="565849795_58">final</range id="565849795_58"> form of <range type="comment" id="565849795_59">protection</range id="565849795_59"> comes from a special <range type="comment" id="565849795_60">sense</range id="565849795_60"> that fish <range type="comment" id="565849795_61">possess</range id="565849795_61">, a sense that is <range type="comment" id="565849795_62">enhanced</range id="565849795_62"> when fish swim in schools. This special sense <range type="comment" id="565849795_63">is related to</range id="565849795_63"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_64">a set of lateral line organs</range id="565849795_64"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_65">that consist of rows of pores</range id="565849795_65"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_66">leading to fluid-filled canals</range id="565849795_66">. These organs are sensitive to <range type="comment" id="565849795_67">minute</range id="565849795_67"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_68">vibrations</range id="565849795_68"> in the water. <range type="comment" id="565849795_69">The thousands of sets </range id="565849795_69">of those special organs in a school of fish together can <range type="comment" id="565849795_70">prove</range id="565849795_70"> very effective in <range type="comment" id="565849795_71">warning</range id="565849795_71"> the school about <range type="comment" id="565849795_72">an approaching threat.</range id="565849795_72"> The <range type="comment" id="565849795_73">purpose</range id="565849795_73"> of <range type="comment" id="565849795_74">schooling behavior</range id="565849795_74"> is not the only aspect of schooling that is not <range type="comment" id="565849795_75">fully</range id="565849795_75"> understood. It is also <range type="comment" id="565849795_76">unclear exactly</range id="565849795_76"> how fish<range type="comment" id="565849795_77"> manage to maintain their tight formations.</range id="565849795_77"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_78">Sight seems to play a role in the ability</range id="565849795_78"> of fish to move in schools, and some <range type="comment" id="565849795_79">scientists</range id="565849795_79"> believe that,<range type="comment" id="565849795_80"> at least</range id="565849795_80"> in some species, sight may play the <range type="comment" id="565849795_81">principal</range id="565849795_81"> role. However, many experiments <range type="comment" id="565849795_82">indicate</range id="565849795_82"> that <range type="comment" id="565849795_83">more than sight is involved. </range id="565849795_83">Some fish school quite well i<range type="comment" id="565849795_84">n the dark or in murky water</range id="565849795_84"> where <range type="comment" id="565849795_85">visibility</range id="565849795_85"> is extremely limited. This <range type="comment" id="565849795_86">indicates</range id="565849795_86"> that <range type="comment" id="565849795_87">senses other than eyesight </range id="565849795_87"><range type="comment" id="565849795_88">must be involved</range id="565849795_88"> in <range type="comment" id="565849795_89">enabling</range id="565849795_89"> the schooling behavior. The <range type="comment" id="565849795_90">lateral line system</range id="565849795_90"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_91">most likely plays a significant role</range id="565849795_91"> in the ability of fish to <range type="comment" id="565849795_92">school</range id="565849795_92">. Because these lateral line organs are sensitive to the most minute vibrations and <range type="comment" id="565849795_93">currents</range id="565849795_93">, this organ system may be used by fish to <range type="comment" id="565849795_94">detect</range id="565849795_94"> movements among members of their <range type="comment" id="565849795_95">school</range id="565849795_95"> <range type="comment" id="565849795_96">even</range id="565849795_96"> when <range type="comment" id="565849795_97">eyesight is limited or unavailable.</range id="565849795_97">



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19. sc hooling behavior in certain fish: 3,5,6 20 hypotheses related to purpose:1, 5, 7 hypotheses related to manner: 2, 6