Summary of “Archerfish target shoot with ‘Skillfully Thrown’ Water” by Peggy Gerullis and Stefan Schuster
Gerullis and Schuster stated that Archerfish obtain their food by shooting a jet of water very skillfully. In recent research the archerfish’s skills we tested to the limit. The Archerfish used “precise time control of movement,” to accurately hit the target from a variation of distances. This technique is not only reminiscent of the human’s ability to throw a rock or spear, but shows that archerfish were able to change “hydrodynamic properties of a free jet of water. (Gerullis & Schuster, 2014)
Personally I found this article very fascinating. The archerfish’s ability to use a jet stream to hunt is reminiscent of a human throwing a rock, but to a higher degree. It is able to make the jet turn into a water droplet right before it hits the prey. That means that the archerfish has found a way evolve it's hunting skill into something more spectacular. I would like to know exactly how did they manage to perfect the art of “free jet water.” How did a fish manage to acquire the same skill set as a human?
I love your question about why these fish and people developed the same skill. Perhaps in our evolution unit we'll get to an answer.
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