Gulf Toadfish (Opsanus beta):
Gulf toadfish males have specialized
swimbladder muscles that are used to
produce the sound known as the 'boatwhistle'.
There are 69 species of toadfishes, and
the sounds of only five species are known.
Coral Reef Toadfish (Sanopus
astrifer): This toadfish produces a
series of 'boatwhistle' calls in a bout.
Gafftopsail Catfish (Bagre marinus):
Sea catfish are mouth-brooders that
produce several types of sounds.
Spotted Seatrout (Cynoscion
nebulosus): Spotted seatrout produce
a double-pulsed sound along with a
moan-like sound.
Silver Perch (Bairdiella chrysura):
Silver perch produce a relatively
high-frequency staccato sound. This
recording has the sounds of both silver
perch and spotted seatrout, recorded in
Pine Island Sound, FL.
Aggregation of silver perch: So many
fish can be calling in an aggregation that
individual calls are no longer
distinguishable (and it may get so loud
that you can hear the sound in air).
Cusk eel (Ophidion marginatum):
The cusk eel has a unique sound production
mechanism that involves drumming the
swimbladder with a modified vertebrae.
There are 209 species of cusk eels. This
is the only cusk-eel sound that has been
identified to the species level.
Domino damselfish (Dascyllus
albisella): Damselfish produce a sound
while performing a visual swimiming
display known as the signal jump. The
sound production mechanism is not known.
Dolphins
Echolocation: Dolphin echolocation
clicks are very short duration
Signature Whistles: These signature
whistles were recorded at about 1 a.m. in
Pine Island Sound, FL. The sound of
silver perch can be heard in the
background.
Other sounds
Snapping Shrimp: Snapping shrimp are
the largest source of sound in the coastal
ocean. They produce very loud broad-band
sounds by snapping their claws and
cavitating water.
Boat Noise: Boats are the largest
source of non-natural sound in the
oceans. This is the sound of a small
motorboat in New Pass, Sarasota.
