The fish that shoots down its prey with water bullets
This fish shoots its prey out of the air with a jet of water, like a living water gun.
The short version
The archerfish hunts insects above the water by spitting a precise, high-speed jet to knock them off branches. It automatically corrects for how light bends at the surface so it aims at the real target, learns to shoot by watching others, and can hit prey several body-lengths away.
Why it's so weird
- ✓The Archerfish shoots its prey out of the air with a high-speed jet of water, like a living water gun.
- ✓The Archerfish automatically corrects for how light bends at the water's surface, aiming at the real target instead of the illusion.
- ✓The Archerfish presses its tongue against a groove in the roof of its mouth to fire a powerful, focused jet.
- ✓The Archerfish fires a bigger, more powerful blast when the target is heavier.
- ✓The Archerfish can knock a bug clean off a branch from several body lengths away, and the young learn to shoot just by watching the adults.
The full story
This fish hunts by shooting its prey out of the air with a jet of water. Meet the archerfish, a living water gun with shockingly good aim. When it spots a bug sitting on a branch above the water, it presses its tongue against a groove in its mouth and fires a powerful, focused jet, knocking the insect clean off and into the water to be eaten. Here is the genius part. Light bends when it passes from air into water, so the bug is never actually where it appears to be. The archerfish does that physics automatically and aims for the real target, not the illusion. It can even pump out a bigger, more powerful blast when the target is heavier. Young ones even learn to shoot just by watching the adults practice. And it can nail a target several body lengths away. Follow for more weird animal facts.
Watch the 45-second version
Archerfish gallery
