6. SOUND PRODUCTION AND DETECTION
191
The mechanisms of sound production in fishes need further elucidation, especially in relation to the remarkable fast-acting properties of the
sonic muscles. If these properties, as well as those of common innervation
and embryonic origin, are found to be as widely distributed among the
diverse families of fishes as is presently apparent, then questions begin
to arise as to the evolutionary origin of sound production.
Data are now being accumulated at a rapid rate on the behavioral
significance of fish sounds. Acoustic interactions and communication
among fishes are evidently more common than was thought only about
20 years ago. Both laboratory and field investigations are now establishing
the behavioral contexts for such interactions in many species. One area
of this study that has yet to be examined is the ontogeny of these interactions. A strong trend in modern animal behavioral study is toward an
understanding of the development of behavior. It is no longer appropriate
to simply label a behavior as innate or learned, but it is necessary to investigate the physiological, experiential, genetic, and other antecedents
of the behavior as it develops in the individual (Schneirla, 1965). One
of the few ontogenetic behavioral studies in fishes has been on the development of schooling. Shaw (1960, 1961) showed the possible relationship of the optomotor response in larval fishes to aggregation and schooling. Investigations of the development of sonic behavior in fishes are
clearly indicated and desirable.
The future of the field of fish bioacoustics is exciting, and areas for
research are available to workers from many disciplines. Many basic problems still exist, but at the same time the application of the basic information is feasible and has a great potential toward improving our understanding of aquatic resources in general.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The author’s research in this field has been supported in part by grants GB-1574
and GB-4364 from the Psychobiology Program of the National Science Foundation.
Support was also received through Contract 552 (06) between the Office of Naval
Research and The American Museum of Natural History. This report, in part, serves as
a final report for this contract. Some of the review work was done in connection with
Contract N61339-1212 between the U. S. Naval Training Device Center, Orlando,
Florida, and The American Museum of Natural History, and many of the figures
used here are reproduced with the permission of the U. S. Naval Training Device
Center. The author would like to add a special personal acknowledgment to the late
Dr. Willem A. van Bergeijk. It was through his inquiring and incisive thinking that
the author was led to explore many avenues of this field. His untimely death, as he
was approaching the peak of a brilliant career, was a loss not only to the immediate
field but to science in general. This opportunity is taken to dedicate this chapter to
a friend and colleague.
191
The mechanisms of sound production in fishes need further elucidation, especially in relation to the remarkable fast-acting properties of the
sonic muscles. If these properties, as well as those of common innervation
and embryonic origin, are found to be as widely distributed among the
diverse families of fishes as is presently apparent, then questions begin
to arise as to the evolutionary origin of sound production.
Data are now being accumulated at a rapid rate on the behavioral
significance of fish sounds. Acoustic interactions and communication
among fishes are evidently more common than was thought only about
20 years ago. Both laboratory and field investigations are now establishing
the behavioral contexts for such interactions in many species. One area
of this study that has yet to be examined is the ontogeny of these interactions. A strong trend in modern animal behavioral study is toward an
understanding of the development of behavior. It is no longer appropriate
to simply label a behavior as innate or learned, but it is necessary to investigate the physiological, experiential, genetic, and other antecedents
of the behavior as it develops in the individual (Schneirla, 1965). One
of the few ontogenetic behavioral studies in fishes has been on the development of schooling. Shaw (1960, 1961) showed the possible relationship of the optomotor response in larval fishes to aggregation and schooling. Investigations of the development of sonic behavior in fishes are
clearly indicated and desirable.
The future of the field of fish bioacoustics is exciting, and areas for
research are available to workers from many disciplines. Many basic problems still exist, but at the same time the application of the basic information is feasible and has a great potential toward improving our understanding of aquatic resources in general.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The author’s research in this field has been supported in part by grants GB-1574
and GB-4364 from the Psychobiology Program of the National Science Foundation.
Support was also received through Contract 552 (06) between the Office of Naval
Research and The American Museum of Natural History. This report, in part, serves as
a final report for this contract. Some of the review work was done in connection with
Contract N61339-1212 between the U. S. Naval Training Device Center, Orlando,
Florida, and The American Museum of Natural History, and many of the figures
used here are reproduced with the permission of the U. S. Naval Training Device
Center. The author would like to add a special personal acknowledgment to the late
Dr. Willem A. van Bergeijk. It was through his inquiring and incisive thinking that
the author was led to explore many avenues of this field. His untimely death, as he
was approaching the peak of a brilliant career, was a loss not only to the immediate
field but to science in general. This opportunity is taken to dedicate this chapter to
a friend and colleague.