Watch a marlin flash bright stripes before a deadly strike

With their spearlike noses, high-speeds, and group attacks, striped marlin (

Kajikia audax

) are fearsome predators of sardines and other small fish. But how do they avoid impaling one another during these mêlées?

New drone footage may provide the answer. As seen above, right before a marlin attacks a school of sardines, it changes color,

dialing up the contrast of the stripes along its body

. Additional recordings, reported today in

Current Biology

, showed the same thing: Ten seconds before it charges, a marlin “turns on” its stripes, as the researchers put it. Then, when the attack is done, the marlin dials the contrast back down. Layers of colorful cells in their skin rapidly change shape to create the strong pattern.

The display only occurred during hunting, suggesting it’s a signal to the other blitzing marlin to stay back. It could also be a way to confuse prey.

Source: ScienceNOW - February 26, 2024 Category: Science Source Type: news