As it turns out, bystanders that have witnessed a fight between two rivals are much less likely to challenge the winner of the fight than they are to challenge the loser. In other words, these fish are keeping score. By remembering–and avoiding–the winners of other fights, these rubbernecking fish can protect themselves from bodily harm. This research is interesting because it hints at an unrecognized complexity in the social interactions of fish. While it’s well known that certain mammals–including humans–and certain very social birds are natural born rubberneckers, it’s hard to find this behavior in the lower animals. For the Siamese fighting fish though, rubbernecking is a matter of survival.