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Scientists Learn How Nemo Finds His Way Home

livescience.com — How does the orange clownfish — aka Nemo from the movie "Finding Nemo" — really find its way home? It turns out the colorful saltwater fish can sniff for leaves that fall into the sea from rainforests growing on the islands near their coral reef homes.

Who dugg this? Made popular Aug 27, 2008

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  • trixyfox, on 08/27/2008, -0/+50Really?? I'm pretty sure it was the stoned turtles that helped Nemo home
  • bgrah449, on 08/27/2008, -0/+23FTA: "After months of study, including many dead ends, the team of researchers were able to prove that the animators drew Nemo, his home, and the finding, because it's a ***** fictional tale and not a documentary."
  • lovecss, on 08/27/2008, -0/+9That was on the way to Sydney, duh!
  • walshgopher, on 08/27/2008, -0/+9Did you know since Finding Nemo was released, the number of clown fish in the wild has sharply declined?
  • travisMarc, on 08/27/2008, -0/+7buried as inaccurate. Marlin found Nemo, Nemo did not find his way home.
  • NovaPrime9, on 08/27/2008, -0/+6"Orange clownfish?" It's a false percula, also called ocellaris. A science site should at least use the correct name.

    Awesome discovery, though.
  • LemonChicken, on 08/27/2008, -0/+5Oh, really scientists? I'm pretty sure it was a movie.
  • ap1983, on 08/27/2008, -0/+5So little Nemo was more resourceful than we first gave him credit for
  • annjay, on 08/27/2008, -0/+4This is amazing
  • chrissku, on 08/27/2008, -0/+3So how does this "leaf sniffing" help him in the middle of the ocean?
    Now I must go "sniff" a few leaves myself.
  • dragnonfly310, on 08/27/2008, -0/+3Anyone catch the irony here? These scientists did the same thing to these clown fish as the dentist did in the movie--removed clown fish from their homes. . . .
  • ieatpizza, on 08/27/2008, -0/+2cranberries
  • earlvanze, on 08/28/2008, -0/+2Yeah exactly. Does anyone realize that Nemo didn't do anything to get himself home? He just stood inside a glass aquarium, separated from the world.

    Well breaking out of the aquarium sure. But Marlin and Dory found Nemo. Hence the title, finding Nemo. He didn't find his way home. That part of the movie wasn't even shown how he got back from Australia. He was already with his dad.
  • drimo, on 08/27/2008, -0/+2That is why marine aquarium hobbyists must always buy aquacultured livestock or livestock raised in captivity.
  • GiggleStick, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1He built a freaking nuclear submarine, I'm pretty sure he knows what he's doing.
  • cowsgonemadd3, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1Totally dude!
  • Rikkochet, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1That's neither ironic nor apropos.
  • cowsgonemadd3, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1Lucky fin!
  • jshooter1377, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1The little kiddies around the globe will be thrilled...

    Seriously though, don't scientists have anything better to do?
  • leerayIG88, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1Yep...GPS, I knew it!
  • cowsgonemadd3, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1Looks like fish are food after all.
  • gridiron, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1ummm... Nemo didnt find his way home. His dad found him. Miles away.


    Granted, at the end they were at home. but that was probably more his dad than Nemo.
  • obilon, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1Cool. Run, Nemo, Run. Wait! Wrong Movie. Sorry. Still DUGG because clownfish aren't funny but they're cute and my kids love them. BTW, Nemo is a great movie. Can Pixar do no wrong. Off topic, I know but, seriously, Pixar rules.
  • fuckingusername, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1but still cant figure out how to make salt water to run in our cars
  • SimmaDownNow, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1Huh, sniffing leaves. Learning how to speak whale would've been my first guess.
  • Technoidatx, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1Im hungry for Sushi now
  • inactive, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1Clownfish have a perfectly bizarre natural history.

    Clownfish and certain damselfish are the only species of fishes that can avoid the potent poison of a sea anemone. There are several theories about how this is accomplished:

    Clownfish live in small groups inhabiting a single anemone. The group consist of a breeding pair, which cohabit with a few non-reproductive, "pre-pubescent", and smaller male clownfish. When the female dies, the dominant male changes sex and becomes the female. [2] This life history strategy is known as sequential hermaphroditism. Because clownfish are all born as males, they are protandrous hermaphrodites (pro=first; androus=male)[3]. This is in contrast with another form of hermaphroditism, known as protogyny, in which all fish are born as females but can change to males later.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clownfish
  • handheldchimp, on 08/27/2008, -0/+1I thought this was an onion article...
  • CMuffa, on 08/27/2008, -1/+1Marlin and that dumb yapping dykefish.
  • LeviTheSmith, on 08/27/2008, -1/+1*****
  • leerayIG88, on 08/27/2008, -1/+1*sniffs finger*
  • 007isbond1, on 08/27/2008, -2/+1hey wait... didnt the turtle point him in the right direction though?!
  • BXRWXR, on 08/27/2008, -3/+2You sir, win teh internets!

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