The cuttlefish is a sea creature, but in its traits it is somewhat different from other marine animals, and some of its features are even compared with the human body. A study of the animal's memory has recently been published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B. It shows that as they age, cuttlefish keep their memory intact better than humans.

The study involved a team of researchers from the University of Cambridge, the Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole, Massachusetts, and the University of Caen.

It says that even as they age, cuttlefish memory stays intact and sharp, which is not the case in humans. This remarkable animal can remember what happened to it up to the last few days of its life. It is thought this may be the first time research has found that the animal's memory of particular events does not decline with age.

The researchers tested 24 cuttlefish. One group was 10 to 12 months old and the other between 22 and 24 months old. They were compared with memory tests of 90-year-old humans.

For the experiment, the cuttlefish were trained to a spot in the tank marked with a black and white flag. They were taught that two regular foods were kept at particular flag-marked spots. On one side were a few pieces of king prawn, which they were not used to; on the other was a kind of grass shrimp, which they prefer. This was tested every three hours for four weeks, and the feeding spots were changed regularly.

The study found that cuttlefish can be patient for good food, waiting a long time for it. They understand that if they wait a certain time they will get the food they like. They can also tell whether they like a food, and later seek out the same food. This suggests that even when time and place change, cuttlefish memory does not fade with age as happens in humans.

The researchers say the vertical lobe of the cuttlefish brain has a learning system that keeps their memories working until a few days before death.

Dr Alexandra Snell of the University of Cambridge's psychology department, the study's first author, said cuttlefish can remember what they ate, where and when, and use this memory in their future feeding.

The surprising thing, she said, is that they do not lose this ability with age, even as their muscle strength declines. Older cuttlefish performed as well in the test as younger ones. The findings also show that this memory is of great use to them in other aspects of their biology.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.