Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Letter
  • Published:

The rigidity of fish and patterns of lateral line stimulation

Abstract

Various functions have been attributed to the lateral line organs of fish (and amphibia), including those of detecting touch and sound (both near- and far-field) and flow past a swimming fish1–4. As the lives of fish and the structures of their lateral lines vary greatly, lateral line function almost certainly varies between species and is probably not simple even for one animal. It is, however, generally agreed that lateral line neuromasts are excited by liquid within the canal moving relative to the canal walls4–6. For the sprat, such movements are proportional to local differences in motion between the fish and the surrounding seawater7 and a similar situation must exist for other fish. Here we describe the motions of fish and seawater at various positions around vibrating sources. We show that fish are rigid longitudinally, and thus local differential movements between fish and seawater occur. Predictions based on these results suggest that when a fish is close to a source of vibration, for example, to a neighbouring fish, the amplitudes, signs and patterns of stimulation along the lateral line system change in a striking way with the position of the fish relative to the source.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Purchase on Springer Link

Instant access to full article PDF

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Harris, G. G. & Van Bergeijk, W. A. J. acoust. Soc. Am. 34, 1831–1841 (1962).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  2. Dijkgraaf, S. Biol. Rev. 38, 51–105 (1963).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Kuiper, J. W. Lateral Line Detectors (ed. Cahn, P.) 105–121 (Indiana University Press, 1967).

    Google Scholar 

  4. Sand, O. Hearing and Sound Communication in Fishes (eds Tavolga, W. N., Popper, A. N. & Fay, R. R.) 459–480 (Springer, New York, 1981).

    Book  Google Scholar 

  5. Sand, A. Proc. R. Soc. B123, 472–495 (1937).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  6. Denton, E. J., Gray, J. A. B. & Blaxter, J. H. S. J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K. 59, 27–47 (1979).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Blaxter, J. H. S., Denton, E. J. & Gray, J. A. B. Hearing and Sound Communication in Fishes (eds Tavolga, W. N., Popper, A. N. & Fay, R. R.) 39–59 (Springer, New York, 1981).

    Book  Google Scholar 

  8. Harris, G. G. Marine Bioacoustics (ed. Tavolga, W. N.) 233–247 (Pergamon, Oxford, 1964).

    Google Scholar 

  9. Enger, D. S. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 22, 527–538 (1967).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Hawkins, A. D. & Horner, K. Sound Communication in Fishes (eds Tavolga, W. N., Popper, A. N. & Fay, R. R.) 311–328 (Springer, New York, 1981).

    Book  Google Scholar 

  11. Partridge, B. L. & Pitcher, T. J. J. comp. Physiol. 135, 315–325 (1980).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Urick, R. J. Principles of Underwater Sound (McGraw-Hill, New York, 1967).

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Denton, E., Gray, J. The rigidity of fish and patterns of lateral line stimulation. Nature 297, 679–681 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1038/297679a0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/297679a0

This article is cited by

Comments

By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing