Asian carp and acoustics

Does anyone know of any studies on whether or not the Asian carp have any exceptional ability to sense water changes or "sound" waves?

All fish sense vibration, however these can very quickly find a hole in a net even in muddy water. I am curious to learn if they might have something more highly developed than your normal fish.

After chasing them for a week up in the Midwest with several new gears, I am curious if that smooth, bony head does not transfer something ( to the lateral line receptors???) .

* Like a bucket over your head*

Any thoughts on these fish having acute sensors for movement or sound vibrations that might utilize that bony head piece?????

It could conceivably conduct sound better to the Weberian apparatus, since bony plates have a very different density from water unlike soft body tissues. The apparatus itself works because by holding air, once again it's a different density from water and differentially picks up various waveforms moving through water. That's all handwaving, but cyprinids in general certainly have much more acute "hearing" sensitivity than most other fishes.

i was wondering on bones effecting fish hearing (and not just the oolith earbone or whatever).

I know the inner ear bones of tetrapods evolved from fish jaw bones. And once when tapping a metal wire rack I noticed I couldn't hear much sound with my ears but felt vibrations. But when I put the chin on the rack I heard the reverberations.

Since ear bones came from fish jaws and jaws can still conduct sound in ways, I sort of wondered how much the bones of a fishes jaw and skull help it hear.

Today , near Alton Illinois, the USFWS has our purse seine with a 'Spook' curtain on it. They will use a Didson sonar like this one , to see just how these fish react when they encounter a net that is stationary.

In testing the gear back last month, I saw these fish find the only possible escape path in very turbid waters. I strongly feel that they sense the acoustic signature of water,interacting with the mesh. * It has always been a consideration of mine that all netting produces a 'signature' in the water. Some nets are louder .... some are softer..... but none are absolutely mute.

I am still strongly believeing in that big ol' bony head reverberating and amplifying sound waves for the critters.

Makes sense. Probably the same hearing/pressure-sensing mechanism that helps them find good chutes and passages for moving through riffles and falls. I would expect that sense to be well developed in many fish that need to navigate shallow rocky or steep stream segments.

Edited by gerald, 21 December 2011 - 10:41 AM.

Some nets are louder .... some are softer..... but none are absolutely mute.

Unless they're MOJI nets!