Japan: Aquarium sticks human photos on tank for 'lonely' sunfish

Staff members believe the sunfish stopped eating when the aquarium was temporarily closed because it was lonely.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatch LiveHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsArtsArts in MotionTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersLonely sunfish in Japan gets cardboard human friendsKaikyokanThe move was a "last resort" to solve the sunfish's health issues which appeared after the aquarium closed for renovationA sociable sunfish who was reportedly missing its human audience during a temporary closure of its aquarium in Japan has been comforted in an unorthodox way.

In a photo posted by the Kaikyokan aquarium in Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi prefecture, the sunfish is seen swimming in front of photos of human faces attached to a row of uniforms.

The move was a "last resort" to solve the sunfish's health issues, which a staff member believed had stemmed from loneliness, the aquarium said on its X account earlier this month.

And it apparently worked. "It seems to be in good health again!" the aquarium wrote on X the next day.

After the aquarium shut for renovation in December, the sunfish stopped eating jellyfish and started rubbing its body against the tank, the Mainichi Shimbun reported on Monday.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cqjv4lz7g57o

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