HOW do reef fish, which usually spend their first weeks in the open ocean, find their way back to the coral where they spend their adult lives?
A team of American and Australian researchers tested reef fish in tanks and found that they can sniff out lagoon water compared to open ocean water, and prefer to spend their time in it (Marine Ecology Progress Series, vol 241, p 151). The team suggests that rather than being randomly scattered in open water, young reef fish may recognise the chemical signature of water from their own reef – and stay within sniffing…
