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Fish Walks, Climbs Waterfalls Like a Salamander (discovery.com)

Posted by msmash on from the climb-like-no-one-is-watching dept.

An anonymous reader links us to an article on Discovery News: A species of cavefish in Thailand has been documented walking and climbing waterfalls in a manner similar to four-footed creatures such as salamanders, in a find researchers call "huge" in evolutionary terms. In a press release Brooke E. Flammang, an assistant professor of biological sciences at NJIT, said that the fish has anatomical features previously known only in tetrapods -- four-limbed vertebrates that include amphibians and reptiles. "What these fish do, in complete darkness, is stick to the rock and climb waterfalls, completely underwater."

12 of 37 comments (clear)

  1. I fully expect... by fishscene · · Score: 2

    After watching the video, I fully expect the slashdot community to tear it apart limb-from-limb the same way they would tear apart a video that shows absolutely NO EVIDENCE whatsoever of doing what the article claims.

    1. Re:I fully expect... by fishscene · · Score: 2

      Here's the video shown in the article linked: https://www.youtube.com/watch?... Shows pictures and closely-cut videos of nothing walking. Unless I'm missing something? Full disclosure, I'm very much a creationist/Christian, but how does that factor here? Although I have a bias - in this case, I think it's fair to say my bias is: "I see nothing in the video supporting the claims they are making - regardless of their bias, my bias, or any bias" Could someone point out to me what I'm missing?

    2. Re:I fully expect... by fishscene · · Score: 5, Informative

      Here's a FAR better video than whatever was linked in the article: https://www.youtube.com/watch?... Someone went into a cave and filmed the fish. What I *liked* about it is it shows it is actually crawling/walking/scaling instead of maybe using its fins as possible spoilers to generate a downward force to keep it on the rock as water flows over it. Maybe someone can post this video instead to the article instead?

  2. Welecome by Nkwe · · Score: 3, Funny

    I for one welcome our rock climbing fish overlords.

    1. Re:Welecome by Z00L00K · · Score: 2

      Like the "Darwin" fish sticker you can purchase.

      --
      If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker would destroy civilization.
    2. Re:Welecome by jellomizer · · Score: 2

      I never really got the idea of the "Darwin" Fish.
      Because Darwinism is opposite of christianity?
      While many major Christian religions fully accept the theory of evolution. Also the symbol of the fish symbol was meant because Jesus called to the disciples where were Fishermen to be Fishers of Men.

      Now you don't need to believe in the religion, but if you are going to protest some subset of a religion you probably should do it is a better way.
       

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    3. Re:Welecome by religionofpeas · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Because Darwinism is opposite of christianity? While many major Christian religions fully accept the theory of evolution

      According to a fairly recent poll, 42% of the Americans believe that God created humans, and another 31% believe in evolution, but with God guiding the process. Only 19% believe in Darwin's theory of evolution. So, while major Christian religions may fully accept the theory, most of its followers do not.

  3. Great now there's two more gaps by guruevi · · Score: 2

    Now that we have walking fish, what came between the walking fish and the non-walking fish and between the walking fish and salamanders?

    --
    Custom electronics and digital signage for your business: www.evcircuits.com
  4. They live in a cave by jfdavis668 · · Score: 2

    They didn't know they weren't supposed to do that.

  5. Re:The book of Genesis by gtall · · Score: 2

    Trump? Didn't you hear? He just accused Ted Cruz, his wife, and his kids as evolving from fish.

  6. Completely New Species..? by red+crab · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Magur fish or Clarias Magur first described in 1822, with habitat in Ganga and Brahmaputra river basins in northern and northeastern India, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh is very commonly known to have walking capabilities. The link mentions this fish as "Commercial pond aquaculture of the catfish, Clarias batrachus (Linnaeus), commonly known as "pIa duk dan" in Thailand, "ikan lele" in Indonesia, and walking catfish in the U.S.A., first developed in Thailand in the late 1950s". This newly discovered species has climbing capabilities, so this might be just related to walking fish with more developed muscles.

    1. Re:Completely New Species..? by religionofpeas · · Score: 3, Insightful
      It's not the first walking fish, but this one is newly discovered, and has unique way of walking. Quote the abstract:

      In all other fishes, the pelvic bones are suspended in a muscular sling or loosely attached to the pectoral girdle anteriorly. In contrast, the pelvic girdle of Cryptotora is a large, broad puboischiadic plate that is joined to the iliac process of a hypertrophied sacral rib; fusion of these bones in tetrapods creates an acetabulum.