New Delhi: Nature never fails to amaze us with its mysteries and strange and surprising phenomenon. There are creatures in nature which are newly discovered and whose features have baffled scientists. One such creature is Danionella cerebrum, a fish which is very small in size but produces a sound which would force you to cover your ears tightly. In this article, we will learn more about this pocket-sized dynamo.
Danionella cerebrum: Small size, loud noise
Danionella cerebrum is one of the smallest fish in the world. It is mainly found in the turbid low altitude streams on the southern and eastern slopes of Myanmar’s Bago Yoma mountain range and also from the irrigation canals southwest of Hmawbi town. Earlier, it was mistakenly identified as Danionella translucida since both of them look very similar. An adult Danionella cerebrum measures between 10 mm to 13.5 mm and their brain volume is just 0.6 cubic mm and it is the smallest known adult vertebrate brain as per reports.
The miniature size of Danionella cerebrum and its rich behavioural repertoire have made the fish a dear to the researchers and a novel important model system in neuroscience research in today’s age. The fish is valued for its transparency, which means that one can see its brains in action and this allows researchers to closely study its behaviour.
The sound produced by Danionella cerebrum
According to a study by the scientists at Charité University in Berlin which was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Danionella cerebrum, whose width is about the same as an adult human fingernail, produces sounds that exceed 140 decibels. To put into perspective, the sound is as loud as an ambulance siren or jackhammer or a gunshot.
Unlike other fish, the sound production system of Danionella cerebrum is unique. It involves a drumming cartilage, specialised rib and fatigue-resistant muscle which enables the fish to accelerate the drumming cartilage at extreme forces and generate rapid, loud pulses. The fish, in order to produce the sound, uses a special muscle to move rib lying next to the swim bladder into a cartilage piece. After the release of the rib, it hits the swim bladder and makes the drumming sound. Unlike the females, the rib is much harder in males which is why the former do not produce sounds. As per scientists, the fish probably uses it to navigate murky waters or males use it to warn off competition.
The Danionella cerebrum, a minuscule fish from Myanmar, produces surprisingly loud sounds exceeding 140 decibels, loud as a jackhammer. Its unique sound-producing mechanism involves a specialized rib, cartilage, and muscle impacting its swim bladder. knowledge Knowledge News, Photos and Videos on General Knowledge
