This Tiny Male Fish Can Generate Sound as Loud as a Gunshot, Researchers Stunned

Researchers have revealed an interesting fact about the male Danionella cerebrum, a tiny fish almost the size of a human fingernail possesses the capability to produce sounds as loud as a gunshot.

Experts from Berlin's Charité University unraveled this mystery, stating that the fish employs a unique sound production system featuring drumming cartilage, a specialised rib, and fatigue-resistant muscle.

Traditionally found in the mainstream of Myanmar, this tiny fish generates sound through vibrations from its swim bladder, a gas-filled organ responsible for buoyancy control, driven by the rhythmic contractions of the specialised "drumming" muscles, the paper states.

However, as per experts, the sound production mechanism of the pulses produced by the male fish, boasts the smallest known brain among vertebrates and remains elusive, as the swim bladder related to the muscle mechanisms does not offer a plausible explanation for the origin of this sound.

This allows the Danionella cerebrum to accelerate the drumming cartilage at extreme forces, generating rapid and loud pulses.

The study highlights, "Understanding this extraordinary adaptation expands our knowledge of animal motion and highlights the remarkable diversity of propulsion mechanisms across species, contributing to our broader understanding of evolutionary biology and biomechanics."

Upon release, the rib strikes the swim bladder, which creates a distinctive drumming sound. Notably, the rib is considerably harder in males, denoting why females do not produce such sounds.

However, the scientists have not determined the exact purpose of the fish's loud sounds, they suggested potential roles such as aiding navigation in murky waters that serve as an aggressive tactic employed by males to ward off competition.