No bait!

DanDMan

I had this idea a while back, but never gave it serious thought.. And to think I work for a living while these people get paid to do stuff like this...

Quote:

No bait! Fish may respond to sound
Scientists are testing a plan to train fish to catch themselves by swimming into a net when they hear a tone that signals feeding time. If it works, the system could eventually allow black sea bass to be released into the open ocean, where they would grow to market size, then swim into an underwater cage to be harvested when they hear the signal. Previous experiments have used sound to train a fish to feed - similar to what Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov did in his famous dogs that salivated at the sound of a bell, expecting food. In Japan, scientists have used sound to keep newly released farmed fish in certain areas, where they could be caught in traditional ways. But no one has ever tried to get fish to leave and return to an enclosure where they can be scooped up. Simon Miner, a research assistant at the Marine Biological Laboratory at Wood's Hole, said the first objective was to see if the fish could truly be trained. He got his answer after keeping the fish in a circular tank, then sounding a tone before he dropped food in an enclosed "feeding zone" within the tank that the fish could enter only through a small opening. Researchers played the tone for 20 seconds, three times a day, for about two weeks. Afterward, whenever the tone sounded, "you have remote-control fish," Miner said. "You hit that button, and they go into that area, and they wait patiently," he said. Some fish forgot after five days. Others remembered as long as 10. Miner said the strength of memory seems tied to how long the fish are trained.

Read more here: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080326/ap_on_sc/pavlov_s_fish

CharlieLittle

I hear ya on the work :lol:

Old fella I knew before he passed on used to walk out on his dock and whistle. Water would be churning even before he threw the food in. Whether it was the whistle or just the sound of him walking out, it works!

Dave Donley

My Dad does the same thing except with homing pigeons, the idea is that when he does it on race day they go into the loft faster because they're hungry and the sound will encourage them to go in faster. It's a neat trick but also might come in handy for harvesting or other...

veggie boy

My fish feeder (pet feeder) has a voice message at the end of the feed which you program in. Mine says 'here fishy fishy fishy, here fishy fishy fishy' :lol:

. Problem is it's made for dogs and cats not fish, hence the message after and not before the feeder releases the food. It would be interesting to see if they would respond over time if the message came first. As it is, I reckon they recognise (approximatelly) the feeding time anyway and all congregate under the feeder.

Jaymie

we put the pellets in a plastic bottle for temporary holding. at feed time the bottle gets rattled and all the fish appear

EllKayBee

Quote:

Mine says 'here fishy fishy fishy, here fishy fishy fishy'

Stupid thing is - I believe you :sign5:

veggie boy

Tis true - I assume you can record a message on your's Les.

adrian9737

I ring an ancient cow bell above the water, then a little below the surface. But there's no way of telling whether perhaps the fish have already responded to the squeaky pool gate! They do salivate, though, just like Pavlov's pets.

EllKayBee

Quote:

I assume you can record a message on your's Les.

Yep - can do!...only I dismissed it as an unnecessary extra :shifty:

gnash06

I tap 3 times on the edge of the tank, the goldies come straight up and the sp's follow.
I've done this with all my fish and it appears to work.( unless their all scared shitless and trying to escape

)

steve

muzza has gone one step further! he can recognise patterns

he's in a tank by the computer room door, i'm in and out of here a million times a day, but when i walk in, pause, (think crap i havent fed in a few days), walk back out (to get food) and then back in again he's nearly headbutting the tank. He's already at the surface as i raise my arm.

adrian9737

Have we been introduced to Muzza?

steve

theres a pic of him somewhere

http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/forum ... =muzza+cod

adrian9737

Terrifying animal!

veggie boy

Was out at the shed this afternnon when the afternoon feeding occured (auto feeder). When the thing turns on, the first part of the cycle is to vibrate in order that the food will settle to allow it to get into the drum. Fish definitelly recognise this as the first sign of feed time :-)

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No bait!

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