Wednesday, May 13, 2026

Fish Mystery: What’s Happening Inside Their Habitats?

Remoras are small fish that can stick to big animals like sharks and rays. They use a special suction cup on their heads. Remoras travel with these animals and eat parasites from their skin. For a long time, people thought this was a helpful relationship. Remoras got shelter and food, while the big animals stayed clean.

Now, some scientists think differently. Emily Yeager, a student at the University of Miami, studied remoras. She found that these fish often do not help their hosts. A study from 2025 showed that turtles with remoras ate less. Also, remoras can hurt their hosts. Some even go inside the bodies of their hosts.

Yeager wrote a paper showing that remoras swim inside the cloacas of manta rays. The cloaca is an opening for various body functions. This might harm the manta rays. They cannot easily remove the remoras because they don’t have hands.

Yeager hopes that in the future, scientists can learn more about how remoras interact with their hosts. Relationships in nature can be complicated.

Test Your Understanding

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Vocabulary List:
6 words · tap to reveal
ON

Accent

remoras/rɪˈmɔrəz/noun
small fish that stick to larger animals

suction/ˈsʌkʃən/noun
a pulling action that holds things in place

parasites/ˈpærəsaɪts/noun
small animals or bugs that live on others

hosts/hoʊsts/noun
animals or people that other animals live on

cloaca/kloʊˈeɪkə/noun
an opening used for some body functions

interact/ˌɪntərˈækt/verb
to act or work together with someone

How much do you know?

What do remoras use to stick to big animals?
Teeth
Fins
Suction cup
Gills
Who studied remoras at the University of Miami?
Sarah Johnson
Emily Yeager
Michael Smith
Rachel Wong
What did the 2025 study find about turtles with remoras?
They ate more
They were healthier
They ate less
They swam faster
What part of manta rays do remoras swim inside?
Mouth
Gills
Cloaca
Fins
What do remoras primarily eat off their hosts?
Flesh
Parasites
Algae
Plankton
What type of relationship did people initially think existed between remoras and big animals?
Harmful
Helpful
Neutral
Symbiotic
Remoras are large fish that primarily hunt other fish.
Emily Yeager discovered that remoras can sometimes hurt their hosts.
The cloaca is an opening for various body functions.
Remoras provide a cleaning service for manta rays without any negative effects.
Some remoras enter inside the bodies of their hosts.
Scientists fully understand the relationships between remoras and their hosts.
Remoras are small fish that can stick to big animals like sharks and rays using a special suction cup on their heads. They travel with these animals and eat parasites from their skin. However, a study found that turtles with remoras ate less.
Emily Yeager studied remoras at the University of Miami and wrote a paper showing that they swim inside the of manta rays.
Some scientists now think that the relationship between remoras and big animals is rather than helpful.
The cloaca is an opening that has various functions.
Remoras can cause harm to their hosts because they cannot easily remove the due to not having hands.
Yeager hopes that in the future, scientists can learn more about how remoras with their hosts.
This question is required

Test Your Understanding

Start Quiz
Vocabulary List:
6 words · tap to reveal
ON
Accent
remoras/rɪˈmɔrəz/noun
small fish that stick to larger animals
suction/ˈsʌkʃən/noun
a pulling action that holds things in place
parasites/ˈpærəsaɪts/noun
small animals or bugs that live on others
hosts/hoʊsts/noun
animals or people that other animals live on
cloaca/kloʊˈeɪkə/noun
an opening used for some body functions
interact/ˌɪntərˈækt/verb
to act or work together with someone

How much do you know?

What do remoras use to stick to big animals?
Teeth
Fins
Suction cup
Gills
Who studied remoras at the University of Miami?
Sarah Johnson
Emily Yeager
Michael Smith
Rachel Wong
What did the 2025 study find about turtles with remoras?
They ate more
They were healthier
They ate less
They swam faster
What part of manta rays do remoras swim inside?
Mouth
Gills
Cloaca
Fins
What do remoras primarily eat off their hosts?
Flesh
Parasites
Algae
Plankton
What type of relationship did people initially think existed between remoras and big animals?
Harmful
Helpful
Neutral
Symbiotic
Remoras are large fish that primarily hunt other fish.
Emily Yeager discovered that remoras can sometimes hurt their hosts.
The cloaca is an opening for various body functions.
Remoras provide a cleaning service for manta rays without any negative effects.
Some remoras enter inside the bodies of their hosts.
Scientists fully understand the relationships between remoras and their hosts.
Remoras are small fish that can stick to big animals like sharks and rays using a special suction cup on their heads. They travel with these animals and eat parasites from their skin. However, a study found that turtles with remoras ate less.
Emily Yeager studied remoras at the University of Miami and wrote a paper showing that they swim inside the of manta rays.
Some scientists now think that the relationship between remoras and big animals is rather than helpful.
The cloaca is an opening that has various functions.
Remoras can cause harm to their hosts because they cannot easily remove the due to not having hands.
Yeager hopes that in the future, scientists can learn more about how remoras with their hosts.
This question is required

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