Wild Fish Can Recognize Individual People, and Maybe Even Human Faces

Learn more about how certain fish can recognize human divers, and may have even formed bonds with them.

By Monica Cull
Feb 19, 2025 12:11 AM
tomasek-with-fish
(Credit: Maëlan Tomasek) Study author Maëlan Tomasek, with a “volunteer” in the experiment conducted in the Mediterranean Sea

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When it comes to animals with incredible memories, fish typically don’t come to mind, in fact, it's quite the opposite. Even the poor goldfish has been accused of only having a 10-second memory, though science has proved that false

However, a new study published in Biology Letters found that not only do certain fish have a great memory, but they’re also able to tell people apart. 

Could Fish Recognize Humans?

While doing research for a different study, divers in a research station in the Mediterranean Sea found that local fish would follow them and even steal food that was intended as a reward for something else. 

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