Terrestrial species such as birdie , bears , and humans have adapted to angle for solid food in water , be it with a specialized snoot , mighty paws , or a finespun flight lure . The same can happen in reverse with fish firing down meals with a spurt of piddle or jump off from the ocean to swallow up a bird . A new cogitation published in the journalFish Biologydetails the interesting case of a badass triggerfish that launched itself onto commonwealth in spare-time activity of crabs .
Aptly named the titan triggerfish , these lightning - immediate fish are ravening predators . farm to around 75 centimeters ( 2.5 foot ) in distance , they ’re hump for their hostility by divers who are frequently nipped by their muscular teeth as the triggerfish fiercely defend their nests . It was n’t until Matthew Tietbohl , a coral reef ecologist at King Abdullah University of Science & Technology in Saudi Arabia , visit the Red Sea ’s Mar Mar Island to survey a beach for sea turtle tracks that the triggerfish ’s unusual hunting scheme was key .
“ We turned to see this triggerfish launching itself into the shoal and stranding itself , ” said Tietbohl in an consultation withNew Scientist . Stranding is a risky behaviour for most Pisces who ca n’t take a breath on state , so what could motivate such a sheer scheme ? The triggerfish was going after spectre Cancer the Crab , which are common at the H2O ’s boundary as they graze on algae seize to the rocks .
Tietbohl describe that the fish would lay in wait like a stalk crocodile before set up itself out of the water to grab a Cancer the Crab and embroil it back into the sea . It necessitate interesting questions about the fish ’s imaginativeness as to accurately cypher where a target is from beneath a pee surface that refracts light differently to air is quite a feat .
Triggerfish are smart eaters that will flip urchins to access their gooey underbelly , so it ’s no surprise that they might exhibit such out - the - corner thinking . To see a saltwater Pisces stranding itself however is strange , as most fish known to do this derive from freshwater environments . As such , Tietbohl and his team require to find out if this explosive , lay - in - waiting hunting strategy vogue is used by other related species , or if it ’s even wide practiced among titan triggerfish . While they saw other triggerfish that appeared to be “ police ” in the shallows they only spotted one visionary launching itself onto the rock .
