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Cleaner fish recognize self in a mirror via self-face recognition like humans
Masanori Kohda1,2, Redouan Bshary3, Naoki Kubo1
1Laboratory of Animal Sociology, Department of Biology and Geosciences, Graduate School of Science, Osaka City University, Osaka 558-8585, Japan.
Summary
Cleaner fish demonstrate mirror self-recognition (MSR) by recognizing their own facial features in photographs, suggesting a mental image of the self. This challenges kinesthetic matching as the sole mechanism for MSR.
Area of Science:
- Ethology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Animal Behavior
Background:
- Mirror self-recognition (MSR) is a debated indicator of self-awareness in animals.
- The underlying mechanisms, mental self-image versus kinesthetic matching, lack explicit testing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if cleaner fish (Labroides dimidiatus) use a mental self-face image for MSR, similar to humans.
- To differentiate between mental self-image and kinesthetic visual matching in cleaner fish MSR.
Main Methods:
- Cleaner fish were tested using mirror mark tests and photographic stimuli, including composite images and self-photographs with marks.
- Behavioral responses to own and unfamiliar images/photographs were recorded before and after mirror exposure.
Main Results:
- Post-mirror test, fish ignored their own reflection but attacked unfamiliar ones.
- Fish recognized their own facial features in composite photographs and exhibited targeted behaviors (throat-scraping) towards marks on self-photographs.
Conclusions:
- Cleaner fish demonstrate MSR through recognition of their self-face in photographs.
- The findings support a mental self-face image mechanism for MSR in cleaner fish, not kinesthetic matching.
- This study highlights the utility of combining mirror tests with photographic experiments to explore cognitive evolution and self-awareness.
