This myth is so widely passed around that it even made it into Time Magazine's "numbers" section at one point. A researcher offers his opinion regarding the stereotype: “A lot of people have the image of a goldfish with a three-second memory – and that’s not the case at all. The Myth - A goldfish's memory lasts only three seconds. There is this notion floating around, nothing more than a bogus myth that the memory span of a goldfish is no more than 3 seconds. (This myth was revisited in Myths Redux and it was re-busted.) A goldfish’s memory lasts only three seconds. Myth: Goldfish have a three second memory. In spite of the popular myth that goldfish have only a 3-second memory, research conducted at Plymouth University has demonstrated that goldfish have a memory span of up to three months. Being completely unable to duplicate even the first part of the myth, the rest could not have followed. They can be trained to respond various ways to certain colors of light; different kinds of music; and other sensory cues. Goldfish three-second memory myth busted. Verdict - Busted Notes - Jamie trained his goldfish to recognize color patterns and complete an obstacle course under water. The myths are wrong, here is the real answer to a goldfish's memory span based on actual study's and real facts to answer this commonly asked question. New findings suggest that the three-second memory of the fish is in fact a myth. Researching into Goldfish Memory Spans. Not only that, but they seem to be able … These studies have also established that goldfish are able to associate time with feeding. Goldfish memory myth busted IT may just swim around in circles, but your pet fish knows more than you think, with a good memory and the ability to handle "complex concepts". In fact, goldfish actually have very good memories for fish. 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