A metaphor for males
In 1995, divers noticed a beautiful, strange circular pattern on the seafloor off Japan, and soon after, more circles were discovered nearby (see photo above). It was a geometric masterpiece in symmetry that had been designed in the sand. Some likened these formations to "underwater crop circles." The geometric formations mysteriously came and went, and for more than a decade, nobody knew what made them.
Finally, the creator of these remarkable formations was found: a newly discovered species of pufferfish. Further study showed these small pufferfish make the ornate circles to attract mates. Males laboriously flap their fins (watch the video link below) as they swim along the seafloor, resulting in disrupted sediment and creating amazing circular patterns. Although the fish are only about 5 inches long, the formations they make measure about 7 feet in diameter.
When the circles are finished, females come to inspect them. Hiroshi Kawase, the curator of the Coastal Branch of Natural History Museum and Institute in Chiba, Japan said if they like what they see, they reproduce with the males. But nobody knows exactly what the females are looking for in these circles or what traits they find desirable.
GUYS, it's okay to feel like a pufferfish! :)
Just sayin.
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