Catfish can track fish wakes in the dark

Infrared photography has revealed that European catfish can stalk prey by tracking underwater wakes much as hunters on land follow footprints.

In this composite image, a European catfish closes in on a potential meal. Pohlmann and Breithaupt

This laboratory demonstration marks the first time that scientists have described a fish following another fish’s wake in the dark, according to project leader Thomas Breithaupt of the University of Konstanz in Germany.