The REAL reason Goldfish jump out of bowls... It is NOT suicide

So you have heard that goldfish jumping out of fishbowls or tank is a classic example of animal suicide.  Many (probably evolutionists) liken it to human depression where someone decides they no longer want to live life.  Not getting into why humans do it (bacteria mind controlling them) animals don't really do this, they do self harm but only when they are very infected (like humans).

It may seem like a goldfish is committing suicide when it jumps out of a bowl but this is far from the truth.  If you think a crystal clear fish tank with nothing living inside it except a fish is normal and optimal, then you are so hopelessly brainwashed that I can't help you.

The truth is an average aquarium is a horribly bad habitat for a fish.  Fish, like any other creature, find security in an environment that has an abundance of resources.  Goldfish are comfortable in an environment where they can't be seen, lots of plants and algae growing, rotting stuff on the bottom, and mosquitoes buzzing around laying eggs which hatch into larvae.  Also they need aerated water (less than other fish but still some type of dripping into the water is good).

Let me guess your pristine american dream (time to wake up) aquarium doesn't provide ANY of these resources to your fish?  Its like if you were put in a glass box with nothing in it not even a bed and then aliens were walking around outside and staring at you and there is nowhere to hide.  I think you would try to escape too.  If you could just get out; anywhere is better than there.  And this is also what your fish thinks.

In the wild similar circumstances would occur.  Fish often get trapped in shallow pools as the water level of lakes or rivers fall.  Once the fish runs out of resources in their small pool they don't want to die. So they take a leap of faith (literally) and leave that pool and try to get back to the main body of water.  This is what is happening in your tank.  The fish has no resources in its current environment (sure you feed it once in a while but with no resources in the environment this just seems like a lucky fluke to the fish) so it takes a calculated risk to find a better habitat.

Moral of the story?  Wake up from the american dream and come back to the real world where the earth is a giant living ecosystem.  You have devised your isolation from nature long enough.