Birds are likewise able to recognise human faces, and it was recently discovered that they have neocortex-like structures. A tropical fish can tell one human face from another despite lacking a brain section that homo sapiens and other “smart” animals use for this task, scientists said Tuesday. Distinguishing between human faces is a surprisingly difficult task. “Fish have a simpler brain than humans and entirely lack the section of the brain that humans use for recognising faces,” Newport said. Understanding fish intelligence might help shed light on our own brain function – whether facial recognition, for example, is an innate or learned ability.

Source: The Guardian June 08, 2016 00:45 UTC