science facts-----Fish can remember and recognize faces, reveals study

Fish can remember and recognize faces, reveals study

A recent study has shown that like other intelligent pets, fish can also remember and recognize human faces.
Recognizing a human face requires identifying subtle differences in facial structures. The brain’s neocortex as well as the fusiform gyrus helps in that process. Previous researches showed that domesticated animals with neocortex – horses, cows, dogs and some birds – can recognize the face of their caregiver.
The new research aimed to see whether an animal who doesn't possess a neocortex are able to do the same. The archerfish was selected as a test subject and with time, it was trained to spit water at a particular image of a human face on a computer screen kept above the aquarium.
During the final tests, the face was placed among 44 unfamiliar faces. Amazingly, the fish spit water at the correct face 81 per cent of time on average. When the researchers made the test harder by using similar head shapes and black and white photos, the fish displayed a selection accuracy of 86 per cent.
Researchers believe that since the fish cannot process other details of a human, like its gender or age, it distinguishes complex facial patterns to recognize faces.
"The fact that we are able to train the fish shows that they have an impressive memory for detailed images and that these memories last much more than 3 seconds," said researcher and zoologist Cait Newport.