Fishes: from social learning to culture

Social learning is widespread among vertebrates and perhaps even invertebrates. It provides a method to discover new information or adopt novel behaviour patterns rapidly without the need to explore the possibilities for one’s self. Social learning enables information to travel rapidly between peers but it can also transcend generations, leading to the establishment of novel behavioural patterns at the population scale, otherwise known as culture. As such it provides a means for information and or behaviour to be passed on between generations that is independent from genetic inheritance. Fishes have repeatedly proven to be a fantastic model to study the mechanisms of social learning and the development of behavioural traditions because they are relatively cheap to maintain in large numbers affording the opportunity to greatly enhance statistical power and detailed experimental design. This chapter explores the evidence of social learning and culture in fishes, the most diverse group of vertebrates on the planet. It reveals that social learning plays a vital role in nearly all aspect of fish behaviour and examples of fish traditions most often arise in the context of movement and migration. The chapter concludes with examples of practical applications and implications of social learning and culture in fisheries and aquaculture.