The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1882-10-06
Fish that Cry.

Il As early as Aristotle's time the voice
| h the fish had been recorded as an
ekisting fact, and the choiros, common
| b the River Clitor, was famous for its
! local sounds. Sir Emerson Tennent
vas so fortunate as to hear the sounds
made by fish directly from the water 1t
vas during a visit to Battacaola, on the
northern coast of Ceylon. Drifting upon
she lake one calm evening, he heard
curious musical trllls and notes, varying
ia tones and intensity, coming up from
the bottom. Some appeared like the
sounds obtained by rubbing the rim of
a wine-glass, while others were distinct
and sharp, coming in quick succession
snd ending in prolonged note. The
aoise made by the great reddish hogfish
/ q the Gulf has-often been heard by the
| writer. They make a curious roaring or
2mnting sound. According to some
who claim to have heard it, the eel pro-
/ dhees the most musical sound of all fish
\ es.s -rssukes=a single leaintenatios1, sofssn
Il lsrepeated, which has decided metahic
i resonance. The Emperor Augustus
frmly believed that eels or murrays
I eould talk, and pretended to understand
heir Language. Probably the loudest
sounds are made by the drum or pig fish
of the Jersey coast. When being hauled
in they make such noise that it can be
heard quite distance, and easily con-
torted into appeals and lamentations
by an excited Imagination. The matter
has been investigated by Prof. Baird, of
the Smithsonian Institute, and he Is of
the opinion that the sounds come from
the belly of the fish. The maigre-a
European tish-makes a remarkable
cooing noise, accompanied by a croak or
groan. The most active noise maker
was fish (Haemulon) found in South
ern waters. 1t was yellow and mot
tied fellow, with mild, intelligent eyes
and large mouth, and on one occasion
when one was hauled up it Immediately
began such a series of groans and grunts,
ending finally in shrieks, that the SYM
pathetic captor tossed it back into the
water.
A variety of the maigre in South
America makes a noise resembling
bell. Sir john Richardson, while off
the coast of South Carolina, was one
night prevented from sleeping by the
noise made by drumfish Lieut.. John
White also states that on his voyage to
China, when his ship was anchored off
the Camboya River, the sailors were
much astonished by the curious sounds
that issued from the water, resembling
the bass of an organ, mingled with the
tones of bell, the croaking of an
enormous frog, and the twang of I'M
mense harp strings. These sounds
swelled into q gentle chorus on both
sides of the ship, and were attributed to
q school of fish. A similar occurrence
in the South Sea was described by Baron
Humboldt. The sailors were greatly
terrified early one evening by an extra
ordinary noise in the air, like the beat
inc of tambourines, followed by sounds
which seemed to come from the ship,
and resembling the escape of air from
boiling LIQUID. Later these strange
sounds, which it was judged proceeded
from a school of s'seioenoides," ceased.
Over fifty varieties of fish are known
TO produce sounds, each more or less
different. Many fishermen are familiar
with the curious note of the gizzard
shad, known to science as the "Loro-
soma" the sound being vibratory and
agreeable. The mullet, so common in
Southern Florida, and which often at
tains larg size, makes a strange sound,
quite prolonged, and during its utterance
bubbles of water are seen arising from
the water above it. The catfish makes
humming sound, and the sea horse
Htters, not whining or neigh, but a
series of single sharp notes. In many
cases the sound is produced by the
pneumatic duct and swimming bladder;
while other fishes make an involuntary
noise by the lips or the pharyngeal or
intermaxillary bones. In the fishes
trigla and zeus there is a diaphragm
with muscles for opening and closing
the swimming bladder and by its action
the sounds are graded and qualified.
The voice of the catfish and eel IS pro-
duced evidently by forcing air from the
swimming bladder into the esophagus
aud the sea horse makes its noise by the
use of certain vibratory voluntary mus
eles, and to all intents and purposes the
sounds are comparable with those made
by other animals expressing, perhaps,
the emotions felt. Their air bladders
are homologous to lungs, and the pneu
matte duct is analogous to the trachea
Of the higher vertebrates.-N. N. T. Sun.