Do fish sleep?

[Willie]

Was trolling this weekend and for someone reason this thought hit me. What do y'all think?

[Stratocaster]

I think they may go into a sort of "stand by" mode kinda like a computer. One eye open watching for predators. :shrug: Never thought of it before.

[Miss B Haven]

OF COURSE they sleep! They are sleeping every time I go fishing! :wink: graemlins/stupid.gif :grin:

[jokester]

I've wondered this before too...just thought that I was the only one who thought of things like this :grin: Guess i'm not alone out there :dance:

-jokester

[fishing is life]

i have a few aquariums and i know those things are sleeping. they just tend to hang on the bottom and dont move much. they sleep when it is nighttime like most of us. if you talk to Fear no Fish he may disagree. but i think they must nap with one eye open.

[greenbuttskunk]

I don't know if they truely sleep, but I find a way to hook em' when they yawn. :grin: :blush:

[devonian]

i don't know if they sleep but i am sure they are laughing as they swim by my offer.

[Fish'nDude]

If they do sleep, I wonder if they dream??
Of what???..... spawning bed fantasies??

[McDuck85]

I've heard that Catfish do tend to nap... :sleep: :wink:

[Hey Man]

According to a text book for a Biology of Fishes course at OSU, fish do sleep. Not necassarily to the same degree that mammals do. The text defines sleep in fish as: when a fish assumes a typical resting posture for a prolonged period, uses some form of shelter, and is relatively insensitive to disturbance.

The text goes on to say that by this definition many fish sleep, but it never said all do.

The authors speculate sleep occurs at times when the fish is relatively inefficient at both foraging and predator avoidance. In this way energy is conserved and predators are not attracted.

The text is "The Diversity of Fishes"

[steelheadslayer]

I see fish sleeping all the time, it's just normally after having been bonked. :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

[Gun Rod Bow]

That is why trolling causes brain damage. Thinking has nothing to do with fishing...IMHO

[Sore Back]

(ANS) Only when I am trolling. graemlins/icon_argue.gif

[RIPPLE]

Great question Willie, I think they do sleep and also some of the bigger ones snore. I know because I've heard them. As I am trolling around for hours, some are snoring, and the other ones are just snickering at me!
:grin: RIPPLE :grin:

[Big Dog]

Gosh would'nt that suck swim all the way up to Boniville, fall a sleep, and wake up at ASTORIA.

DOAHHHHHH graemlins/stupid.gif

[RIPPLE]

Still laughing :laugh: Big Dog.
:grin: RIPPLE :grin:

[BlueWater]

Found this online.

Question: Is it true that fish do not sleep?
Tom M Dechand

Answer: Most all fish spend time in an energy-saving state that can be called
"rest", and we might even call their behavior "sleep", though it is probably
different than "sleep" in most land
animals. Many fish, like Bass and perch, rest on or under logs at
night. Coral reef fish active in the day, hide and rest in crevices
and cracks in the reef to avoid being eaten at night.
The resting behavior of fish is very different from their behavior the
rest of the day. Many minnows, for example, which are very active in
schools during the day, scatter and remain motionless in shallow
water at night. Many fish "rest" or "sleep" during the day and are
active at night instead, but almost all fish sleep.
There are some animals that never stop swimming, like many species of
shark, however, they HAVE to keep moving to push water through their mouths
in order to breathe, and they may still sleep while moving,
we just don't know yet. Write in again soon!
Tom F Ihde


BlueWater.