Detecting goby fish 'swimming' against the waterfall

New research by scientists has published gobies Sicyopterus stimpsoni capable of "swimming" against waterfalls in the Hawaiian Islands, the US to upstream - where they perform mating and maintain the race.

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Goby Sicyopterus stimpsoni

The research has just been published on January 4 in the online scientific journal PLOS ONE.Goby Sicyopterus stimpsoni has the same body size as one finger. Its 'relatives' are found in Caribbean islands.

Biologist Richard Blob, who works at Clemson University in the US, said that fish can swim upstream of standing waterfalls about 100 meters thanks to the special development of two suction cups on the body.

The first cupping is the mouth used to eat algae on rocks. The second suction is developed from the anal fin - a function used to cling to the cliff. His body moved smoothly and inched forward like a caterpillar. The process of 'swimming' up to the top of the waterfall takes about 2 days.

'This is another evolutionary case often seen in gobies Sicyopterus stimpsoni' , Richard Blob told Live Science magazine (USA).