One of the world’s smallest fish, only as wide as an adult’s fingernail, can make a sound as loud as a gunshot, scientists say.
male Danionella cerebrumAccording to a study published in the PNAS journal, the approximately 12mm fish found in Myanmar’s rivers can emit sounds exceeding 140 decibels, comparable to an ambulance siren or a jackhammer.
The most common mechanism by which fish produce sound is through vibrations of their swim bladder (a gas-filled organ used to control buoyancy) driven by the rhythmic contractions of specialized “drumming” muscles. related, the paper says.
However, the sounding mechanism of the generated pulse is Danionella cerebrumAlthough it has the smallest brain of any known vertebrate, it has remained a mystery because the muscular mechanisms associated with its swim bladder have not provided a convincing explanation for the origin of sound.
Scientists at Berlin’s Charité University discovered that this fish has a unique sound-producing system that includes drumming cartilage, specialized ribs, and fatigue-resistant muscles. This allows the fish to accelerate the drumming cartilage with extreme force, producing rapid and large pulses.
“Understanding this extraordinary adaptation expands our knowledge of animal locomotion, highlights the remarkable diversity of propulsion mechanisms across species, and contributes to a broader understanding of evolutionary biology and biomechanics.” says the paper.
A team of scientists used high-speed video recording to investigate the mechanism by which the sound is produced.
To produce sound, the ribs next to the swim bladder are moved by special muscles into a piece of cartilage. When the ribs separate, they hit the swim bladder and make a drum-like sound. Males have much harder ribs, which is why females do not make sounds.
Scientists don’t know why the fish make so much noise, but they suggest it may be an aggressive tactic by the male to help navigate through murky water or warn of competition. are doing.