Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-11-18
SENSE OF HEARING IN FISH.
They Are All Deaf, Says German Pro.
fessor, and Gives His Reasons.
From the London Field.

From the London Field.
Readers of Brehm's "Tierleben" (Animal
Life will recall a statement to the effect
that the carp inhabting a pond in a GER
tain continental town are accustomed to
come up TO the landing steps at the sound
of a bell to be fed. And from this and 9TH
er circumstances it has been commonly
held, at least up to the middle of the last
century that fishes possess the sense of
hearing.
In the year of 1851 were discovered, how
ever. the so-called organs of Corti In the
Internal ear of mammals, which there is
good reason to believe alone receive and
transmit to the brain the vibrations giving
rise to the sense of hearing. Now, these
organs of Corti, together with the bony
labyrinth of the internal ear in which
they are contained. are absent in fishes
alone among the whole group of Verte-
brateS, and 1t accordingly seems highly
probable that these creatures lack the pow
er OF hearing, more especially since there
seems reason to believe that the aforesaid
organs of Corti are absent in such few
members of the other classes of vertebrates
as are deaf. If this be SO, 1t follows, of
course, that the so-called otoliths the
familiar solid white bones in the head of
a cod, for instance) in the ears of fishes
have nothing to do with the sound of hear
ing.
The whole question has recently been dis
cussed IN an exceedingly interesting man
ner by Prof o. korner, director of the ear
hospital at Rostock. The learned professor
says that nature is never wasteful and
since fishes possess keen power of sight
smell and touch On the so-Called lateral
line on the side of the body, 1t Is improb-
able that they are also provided with the
sense of hearing He incidentally cites as
a proof of this the presence of numbers of
sharks at the battle of Aboukir bay and
other naval battles, pointing out that If
those fishes had heard the roar of the can
non they would scarcely have swum about
in their usual unconcerned manner intent
only on business.
Another argument urged is that the sense
of hearing would be useless to fishes, since
the enemies by which they are attacked
rush silently upon them in the waters or
swoop down upon them from above The
vibrations caused by the breaking of the
waves on the beach are probably communi-
Gated by the lateral line system, SO that
fishes are warned in this manner of the
proximity of land.
Brehm's anecdote of the carp coming to
be fed does not by any means imply that
these fishes hear the sound of the bell; and
II is much more likely they feel the vibra-
lions communicated to the water by the
fact of the person coming up to the land
ing steps.
Moreover. according to the German pro-
fessor, II appears as the result of direct ex-
pertinent that while fish are able to take
cogniZance of numerous rapid vibrations in
water, such as those communicated by an
electric bell, they take no notice whatever
of loud single explosions under water such
as those made by dynamite. This strongly
points to the conclusion that they receive
Impressions of the former type of vibration
by means of their sense of touch or feeling,
but that they have no perception of either
kind of vibration by means of hearing.