The cleaning wrasse prefers to eat parasites, dead tissue, scales and mucus from the bodies of other fish and thus acts as a “cleaning service” – a famous example of mutually beneficial relationships between species.
However, a new study has shown that when cleaning wrasses unintentionally set up their “clinic” in the area of aggressive selfish fish, they scare away the wrasse’s “picky customers”. The situation in which inherently mutually beneficial relations are violated by a third party is not fully understood.
Wrasse clients are diverse. If clients are concerned with cleanliness, they adopt a fixed stance. During brushing, which can last from seconds to minutes, the teeth make physical contact with the customer, removing parasites and other dead body tissues. Five researchers spent more than 34 hours over six weeks observing the operation of the reef “refining stations”. They found that customer fish were less likely to swim to “cleaning stations” patrolled by more selfish fish, scaring off “intruders.” “Dumplings guard their algae areas, and these anti-social fish spend a lot of time patrolling their territory, scaring off intruders with bites, attacks, harassment or displays of threats,” the researchers write.
Due to global warming, algae are richer, so selfish fish will occupy more and more territories and become more aggressive, leading to a decrease in the number of species cleared of leeks. This can eventually lead to the destruction of sensitive ecosystems supported by reefs.
Source: Ferra
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