Fact Friday

Which end is which? Many butterflyfish have dark stripes across their eyes and spots on their bodies, which are meant to confuse predators and allow the fish to escape. “Eyespots” are often found near the rear fin of the fish. The spot looks like an eye to the predator. This “fake eye” tricks the predator and costs it an opportunity to get food.

Photo Attribution: Bennett’s Butterflyfish by Klaus Stiefel [CC BY-NC 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/)] 10 June 2010 via Flickr. https://flic.kr/p/8c45wB

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