Robofish created by Professor Huesheng Hu of the University of Essex. They have jewel-bright scales and glide effortlessly with sinuous, lifelike movements in freshwater tanks.

The Robofish took three years and £250,000 to develop and have sensors that allow them to avoid objects.

They can be seen at the London Aquarium with the aim of bringing the public into contact with robots.

In the future they could be used for detecting leaks in oil pipelines or checking for underwater mines.