MUSICAL FISH. 



443 



of the bodj- of Am^jliijjnous cuchia, G ymnarcMs and Sacco- 

 branchus singio. 



The noises prodnced by certain fishes are due primarily to 

 the action of the pneumatic duct and swimming-bladder, 

 while different kinds of noises are made acciclentally or in- 

 voluntarily by the lips or the pharyngeal or intermaxillary 

 bones, as in tlie tench, carp and a large number of other 

 fishes. Over fifty species of fish are known by Dufosse to 

 produce sounds of some sort, and Abbot has increased the 

 number in this country. The swimming-bhidders of Trigla 

 and Zeus have a diaphragm and muscles for opening and 

 closing it, by which a murmuring sound is made. Tlie 







,,-i*'' 



">V 





Fig. 402.— Gizzard Shad. 



loudest sounds are made by Pogonias cJiromis, the drum- 

 fish. In some CyprinincB, Siluroids and eels the sound is 

 made by forcing the air from the swimiuing-bladder into the 

 oesophagus. In the sea-horse {Hiiipoccunpuii), the sounds 

 are made by the vibrations of certain small voluntary 

 muscles. 



Dr. 0. C. Abbot has in this country discovered that the mud 

 sun-fish {Arantharchus jjotnotis) utters a deep grunting sound; 

 the gizzard shad {Dorosoma cepedianum, Fig. 402) makes "an 

 audible whirring sound ;" the chub-sucker or mullet {Erlmg- 

 zon (MonguDi) "utters a single prolonged note accompanied 

 by a discharge of air-bubbles ;" the cat-fish {Amucrus lynx) 



