I think it's near impossible to pin down exactly what a fish experiences, what it's "thinking," and, just as in mammals, it varies with different species. So I prefer to leave it a bit fuzzy and say things like "whatever that means for a fish." I do think perceptive observation (and some of the science) indicates many fish, and many animals for that matter, have a sort of built in or natural "intelligence" particular to their niche in nature and, like a lot of things in science, including the so called "hard sciences," it's open to interpretation and personal biases (you should see some of the
debates high level scientists, including Noble prize winners, get into over physics, for example). Of
course, much of it's instinctual, some human behavior is also instinctual, but I think some have the misperception that instinct means inflexible, and precludes them recognizing, for example, a degree of
problem solving, social negotiation, or other flexible, adaptable, and individual behavior among some of them. But I also think that whatever level of consciousness fish may or may not have (consciousness itself is another subject debated by scientists), it should be recognized as 'alien' to human experience and shouldn't be anthropomorphized, nor attempts made to put it on the same level as human emotion, thought, or consciousness. We should recognize the near impossibility of entering into the 'mind' of another animal and imagining we know what it is it experiences-- how well do we even understand the experience of another human with whom we can
converse, but who thinks differently than we do?
Another mistake, I think, is to draw conclusions from overly simplified environments, like bare tanks. It can be surprising in some instances how much a fish's behavior can change, and sometimes transform, by getting closer to approximating it's preferred natural habitat.
...To me I don't have it all figured out, there's a lot more science and observation to be done, and there's room for different viewpoints, though I don't accept one extreme or the other or agenda driven conclusions.
