Key Takeaways
- Scientists have developed a new understanding of how fish interact as they school in groups
- The glassfish Danionella, an emerging model species in neuroscience, were found to copy their neighbors to align their movements within schools
- Discovering this social copying rule opens a door to examining how the brains of many individuals interact to produce group-level collective behavior
For centuries, scientists have been fascinated by the remarkable coordinated movements of flocking birds, swarming insects and schooling fish.