Unique, Fish is Clashing Head While Fighting

When diving in the ocean floor, hearing the voice dominated the water bubbles. However, scientists are shocked the North Pacific ocean dive into the mysterious voice as the sound of a spear gun. The voice that had never previously heard it was coming from the head race two reef fish, called fish parrotfish or older brother.

Then, while studying the herd Bumphead parrotfish – giant fish older brother rounded forehead (Bolbometopon muricatum), which can reach 1.3 meters in length and weighing 46 kilograms, the scientists documented the violent behavior of the animal, the video image as well.

Name of reef fish was named after the shape they are round, which adds to eccentricities, other than a pouting lips and face yellow to pink.

“It sounded like someone firing a spear gun (speargun) in our ear. Before looking at their own behavior, we joked that the fish can butting horns like a goat,” said researchers from the National Marine Fisheries Service, North Carolina, Roldan Munoz told Live Science. “We were stunned to see with my own eyes it’s behavior.”

During the summer of 2011, had approximately 100 hours of snorkeling and diving, the researchers witnessed the ritual head-butting Bumphead parrotfish on Wake Atoll. Two male fish swim and rammed his head against them. The collision which seemed painful to see, let alone feel it.

Immediately after the collision, the two challenge each other fish that swim quickly formed a semi-circular pattern, trying to bite each other’s bodies.

“After spinning, the fish swimming in opposite directions. Then they turned to each other face to face, rammed his head back,” the researchers wrote in the journal PLoS ONE.

Based on this observation, a ritual that often occur in the days and location of spawning. The researchers suspect that sexual selection explains why the male protruding forehead and habits of those who love to run against. “The genes of the collider survive in the population than those who do not,” he said.

Collision between a male believed to be a way to assert dominance and access to certain territories – which usually can provide a signal to the females that the male is ready to mate, “said Munoz.

Based on the video, male forehead collision memedangkan fights to maintain his place in the water column to wait for females.

“No one ever heard of any head-butting of marine fish species, until now,” said Munoz.

But why the strange behavior of unknown length? The researchers are also wondering. Presumably, because the behavior is the result of competition between males competing for females, only the possibility of fish populations with a high density level. In addition, Wake Atoll also along the reef outside the Great Barrier Reef, Australia.