AquaCoda
Documents behaviour and communication across fish and other aquatic-animal species.
Research at AquaCoda
Research at AquaCoda
AquaCoda builds citizen-science datasets to study aquatic-animal behaviour and communication.
Shared observations may support scientific research and the future development of AI-assisted analysis tools.
Research objective
What are we studying?
AquaCoda documents aquatic-animal behaviour and communication through videos, photographs, sound recordings and written observations.
By comparing observations from different animals, species and environments, the project may help identify recurring behavioural, visual and acoustic patterns.
Datasets
AquaCoda and BettaCoda
BettaCoda
Focuses on Betta fish behaviour and possible sound communication.
Together, these datasets create a structured citizen-science record for observation, comparison and research.
Citizen science
Why your observations matter
A single observation may be difficult to interpret. Combining observations from many participants can help reveal patterns that would otherwise remain unnoticed.
Every careful observation adds context to the dataset.
Uploaded observations are not automatically considered scientifically validated.
Future AI research
From datasets to future AI-assisted analysis
AquaCoda's long-term ambition is to support the development of AI-assisted tools that may help identify and compare aquatic-animal behaviour and communication patterns.
These tools remain a research objective and must be developed and interpreted with scientific review.
Consent information
Research Consent
Contributing an observation to Research is optional. This section explains what you agree to when you select the Research contribution option.
What you are agreeing to
- Inclusion in the AquaCoda research dataset.
- Scientific analysis of the observation.
- Comparison with other observations across participants, species and environments.
- Use of associated observation information (labels, notes, tank/context metadata) for research purposes.
- Approved research access under AquaCoda's access rules.
- Publication of aggregated or appropriately protected results.
What remains under your control
- Research contribution is optional.
- Community sharing is a separate choice.
- AI use is a separate choice.
- Private observations do not automatically become public.
- You choose the settings for each observation.
- No consent option is preselected.
What you are not agreeing to
- Research contribution does not automatically mean public sharing.
- Research consent does not automatically include future AI use.
- Uploading does not guarantee inclusion in a scientific study.
- Uploaded observations are not automatically validated.
- AquaCoda does not provide veterinary diagnosis.
Withdrawal
You can change the visibility of any observation or update your consent preferences in Settings at any time. If you delete an observation, it is removed from active datasets.
Data that has already been de-identified, aggregated, or included in analyses that were completed before your withdrawal may be retained in that aggregated form. Your account and observations can be deleted at any time from Settings → Danger zone → Delete account; deletion is immediate and permanent.
To request withdrawal or ask a question about how your contributions are used, use the Contact page.
Ethics
We prioritize animal welfare above dataset size. Observations that appear to encourage stressing fish are excluded and may be reported to moderators. We do not promise formal scientific publication and we do not overclaim discoveries. Contributions are aggregated carefully and reviewed before being used in any external material.
Optional
Future AI research consent
AI-related use is optional and separate from Community sharing and general Research contribution.
Allow this observation to be used in approved work developing tools that may identify and compare aquatic-animal behaviour and communication patterns.
- AI consent is never preselected.
- AI consent remains independent.
- Turning AI consent on or off does not silently change Community or Research settings.
Privacy and visibility
Privacy and visibility
Private
Only the user can see the observation, except where authorised access is required under existing platform rules.
Community
The observation may appear publicly in the AquaCoda Community.
Research
The observation may be included in the research dataset under the Research Consent.
Future AI research
The observation may be used in approved AI-development work only when the relevant consent is provided.
These choices are separate and can be selected independently where supported.
Animal welfare and scientific quality
Animal welfare and scientific quality
Observations must be recorded without provoking, stressing or endangering the animal.
Recordings obtained through stress or abnormal husbandry conditions may be unsuitable for research and should not be submitted.
How to contribute
Three steps
- 01
Create an observation
- 02
Choose “Contribute to research”
- 03
Review and accept the Research Consent
Contact
Questions about research participation?
Contact AquaCoda if you have questions about consent, research use, withdrawal or how your observations are handled.