This week we were treated to the news that in addition to his other exotic and high-living habits, the esteemed leader of North Korea likes his sashimi cut from living fish. And this week also the topic of whether fish feel pain graced our newspaper. Elizabeth Braithwaite, a behavioral biologist at Edinburgh University, wondered why that question had not arisen before now. Perhaps anglers really don’t want to know. I thought it was because the question had already been answered.
Braithwaite points out that fish have the same architecture for nociception that we do: A-delta and c-fibers. It would be remarkable indeed if fish so equipped did not have the rest of the alarm system we call pain also in the repertoire of their nervous system. Indeed, fish react aversively under noxious stimuli, just as one would expect. And if they are then given pain-killing medication, they respond to that in the expected fashion as well. (more…)