Related Media Releases
Baby fish breathe easier around large predators Baby fish feeling the heat I’ve got your back – fishes really do look after their mates!
ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
James Cook University Townsville
Queensland 4811 Australia
Phone: 61 7 4781 4000
Email: info@coralcoe.org.au
Coral reef fish get stressed and lose weight if they are separated from each other, according to new research about the Great Barrier Reef.
For the first time, researchers from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University have succeeded in measuring the metabolic rates of individual fish in shoals to better understand why they prefer to socialise.
“We have suspected that shoaling fish gain a “calming effect” from living in a group. But up until now we have been unable to measure how widely spread this effect is in individual fish,” says lead author Lauren Nadler.
Her team captured shoals of the blue-green damselfish, Chromis viridis, near Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef. The fish were then either isolated or kept together in shoals.
“The fish that were isolated lost weight after the first week, which meant they were less healthy than those in groups,” Nadler says.
The metabolic rate (an indicator of stress) of all fish was then measured both in a shoal and alone.
“Fish were calmer and less stressed when they had their shoal-mates around, with a 26% decrease in metabolic rate compared to individuals tested alone.”
“If these fish were out in the ocean by themselves, in order to stay alive they would need more food to keep up their energy. Since they don’t have their buddies around to help look out for looming predators, foraging for food would be riskier,” says Professor Mark McCormick.
“The extra energy fish gain from shoaling is so important because it allows them to survive and reproduce and to pass on their genes to the next generation of fish,” he says.
One way fish can become separated from each other is through natural disturbances like tropical cyclones.
“When category 4 Cyclone Nathan passed over Lizard Island last year, we saw a number of blue-green damselfish living by themselves on small coral colonies. They were apparently separated from their group by the sheer force of the storm and currents. Our results show how important group living is for healthy fish populations,” Nadler says.
The paper Shoaling reduces metabolic rate in gregarious coral reef fish species has been published in the Journal of Experimental Biology.
Shoaling reduces metabolic rate in gregarious coral reef fish species
Lauren Nadler, Shaun Killen, Eva McClure, Philip Munday, Mark McCormick
Journal of Experimental Biology 2016: doi:10.1242/jeb.139493
Lauren Nadler
ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
Email: lauren.nadler@my.jcu.edu.au
Phone: 0435 396 042
Prof. Mark McCormick
ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
Email: mark.mccormick@jcu.edu.au
Phone: 0409 371 015 or Office: 07 4781 4048
Kylie Simmonds
Communications Manager
ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
Email: kylie.simmonds1@jcu.edu.au
Phone: 0428785895
James Cook University researchers have found brightly coloured fish are becoming increasingly rare as coral declines, with the phenomenon likely to get worse in the future. Christopher Hemingson, a
Researchers working with stakeholders in the Great Barrier Reef region have come up with ideas on how groups responsible for looking after the reef can operate more effectively when the next bleaching
A new study has delivered a stark warning about the impacts of urban growth on the world’s coral reefs. As coastal developments expand at pace around the world, a year-long study of coral on a reef
Alarming new research shows global warming of 1.5°C relative to pre-industrial levels will be catastrophic for almost all coral reefs – including those once thought of as refuges. Associate Profes
Abstract: Molecular approaches have revolutionised our understanding of the systematics and evolution of most branches on the tree of life, including corals. Over the last twenty-five years molecula
Abstract: Outbreaks of crown-of-thorns starfish (COTS) are a major driver of coral decline across the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) and compound upon the impacts of increasingly frequent and severe coral
Abstract: Being a new staff member at JCU, I will start with a short overview of my research. Next I will zoom in on a specific topic that I have been interested in for a long time: the impact of e
Abstract: The harsh truth is that, despite exciting innovations and increases in activity, ocean conservation is not succeeding, at least not fast enough. This is my conclusion from the last decad
This talk is the last of the parachute science seminar series organized by the ARC CoE Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) committee. Abstract Universities and institutions across th
This talk is the second of three on parachute science being organized by the ARC CoE Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) committee. Abstract For millenia, Traditional Owners have hel
This talk is the first of three on parachute science being organized by the ARC CoE Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) committee. Abstract Parachute science is the practice whereby
ABSTRACT Climate change loss and damage is known as the “third pillar” of international climate governance in addition to mitigation and adaptation. Although there is no agreed upon definition,
ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
James Cook University Townsville
Queensland 4811 Australia
Phone: 61 7 4781 4000
Email: info@coralcoe.org.au