114
In gobies, the relative occurrence of tonal versus pulsatile sound types can vary
geographically. In a Venetian population of the rock goby Gobius paganellus , tonal
sound production is the predominant sound type, with fewer pulsatile sounds, while
a French population of the same species more commonly exhibits pulsatile sounds
(Malavasi et al. 2008 ; Parmentier et al. 2013 ). Body size cannot be ruled out as a
limiting factor explaining this geographic difference, since the French rock gobies
sampled were smaller than Venetian rock gobies (Parmentier et al. 2013 ). At the
interspecifi c level, tonal sounds are clearly less common than pulsatile sounds
within the gobioid fi shes and are found in species of maximum body size above
8.6 cm (Table 3 ); tonal sounds are absent in the smaller sized species, such as the
sand gobies (genus Pomatoschistus and Knipowitschia ; Table 3 ). However, such a
size constraint seems unlikely in darters, where the relatively small Etheostoma
fl abellare produces sounds of high contractile rate.
8 Conclusions
Darters, sculpins, and gobies share similar acoustic repertoires, reproductive behaviours, sound generation mechanisms, auditory sensitivities, and soundscapes. These
shared characteristics suggest evolutionary histories marked by common selective
pressures on both the effi cacy and information value of acoustic communication.
Future comparative studies contrasting these taxa could help us to understand mechanisms of acoustic communication evolution in fi shes.
Acknowledgements We are grateful for the contributions of Drs. Fay and Popper to fi sh bioacoustics, which have undoubtedly enhanced our study of fi sh acoustic communication. Their
body of work on fi sh hearing has provided a critical resource for integrating our work on sound
production into a larger context. While we have not worked directly with them, PN and JNZ were
advised for their Masters degrees by Dr. Dennis Higgs, Dr. Popper’s former post-doc.
References
Agorreta A, San Mauro D, Schliewen U, Van Tassell JL, Kovačić M, Zardoya R, Rüber L (2013)
Molecular phylogenetics of Gobioidei and phylogenetic placement of European gobies. Mol
Phylogenet Evol 69:619–633. doi: 10.1016/j.ympev.2013.07.017
Amorim MCP (2006) Diversity of sound production in fi sh. In: Ladich F, Collin SP, Moller P,
Kapoor BG (eds) Communication in fi shes, vol I. Science Publishers, Enfi eld, pp 71–105
Amorim MCP, McCracken ML, Fine ML (2002) Metabolic costs of sound production in the oyster
toadfi sh, Opsanus tau . Can J Zool 80:830–838. doi: 10.1139/z02-054
Amorim MCP, Neves ASM (2007) Acoustic signalling during courtship in the painted goby,
Pomatoschistus pictus . J Mar Biol Assoc UK 87:1017–1023. doi: 10.1017/S0025315407056822
Amorim MCP, Neves ASM (2008) Male painted goby ( Pomatoschistus pictus ) vocalise to defend
territories. Behaviour 145:1065–1083
J.N. Zeyl et al.
In gobies, the relative occurrence of tonal versus pulsatile sound types can vary
geographically. In a Venetian population of the rock goby Gobius paganellus , tonal
sound production is the predominant sound type, with fewer pulsatile sounds, while
a French population of the same species more commonly exhibits pulsatile sounds
(Malavasi et al. 2008 ; Parmentier et al. 2013 ). Body size cannot be ruled out as a
limiting factor explaining this geographic difference, since the French rock gobies
sampled were smaller than Venetian rock gobies (Parmentier et al. 2013 ). At the
interspecifi c level, tonal sounds are clearly less common than pulsatile sounds
within the gobioid fi shes and are found in species of maximum body size above
8.6 cm (Table 3 ); tonal sounds are absent in the smaller sized species, such as the
sand gobies (genus Pomatoschistus and Knipowitschia ; Table 3 ). However, such a
size constraint seems unlikely in darters, where the relatively small Etheostoma
fl abellare produces sounds of high contractile rate.
8 Conclusions
Darters, sculpins, and gobies share similar acoustic repertoires, reproductive behaviours, sound generation mechanisms, auditory sensitivities, and soundscapes. These
shared characteristics suggest evolutionary histories marked by common selective
pressures on both the effi cacy and information value of acoustic communication.
Future comparative studies contrasting these taxa could help us to understand mechanisms of acoustic communication evolution in fi shes.
Acknowledgements We are grateful for the contributions of Drs. Fay and Popper to fi sh bioacoustics, which have undoubtedly enhanced our study of fi sh acoustic communication. Their
body of work on fi sh hearing has provided a critical resource for integrating our work on sound
production into a larger context. While we have not worked directly with them, PN and JNZ were
advised for their Masters degrees by Dr. Dennis Higgs, Dr. Popper’s former post-doc.
References
Agorreta A, San Mauro D, Schliewen U, Van Tassell JL, Kovačić M, Zardoya R, Rüber L (2013)
Molecular phylogenetics of Gobioidei and phylogenetic placement of European gobies. Mol
Phylogenet Evol 69:619–633. doi: 10.1016/j.ympev.2013.07.017
Amorim MCP (2006) Diversity of sound production in fi sh. In: Ladich F, Collin SP, Moller P,
Kapoor BG (eds) Communication in fi shes, vol I. Science Publishers, Enfi eld, pp 71–105
Amorim MCP, McCracken ML, Fine ML (2002) Metabolic costs of sound production in the oyster
toadfi sh, Opsanus tau . Can J Zool 80:830–838. doi: 10.1139/z02-054
Amorim MCP, Neves ASM (2007) Acoustic signalling during courtship in the painted goby,
Pomatoschistus pictus . J Mar Biol Assoc UK 87:1017–1023. doi: 10.1017/S0025315407056822
Amorim MCP, Neves ASM (2008) Male painted goby ( Pomatoschistus pictus ) vocalise to defend
territories. Behaviour 145:1065–1083
J.N. Zeyl et al.