Goldfish can remember information for at least five months and can learn to recognize colors, sounds, and faces.

Researchers at the University of Plymouth tested goldfish memory in 2003. They taught fish to push a lever to get food. The fish learned to use the lever only at certain times of day, which showed they understood a schedule.Another study at the Technion Institute of Technology in Israel used sound to train fish. Scientists played a specific sound every time they fed the fish. The fish were then released into the wild for five months. When the scientists played the sound again, the fish swam back to the feeding spot.Goldfish use landmarks to remember their way through mazes. This is called spatial memory. Their brains have a part called the lateral pallium. This area works like the human hippocampus, which handles memory and learning.Goldfish can even tell different human faces apart. They use complex visual processing to recognize their owners. The three-second memory myth likely started because fish in small, empty bowls have nothing interesting to remember.