Swim bladder enhances lagenar sensitivity to sound pressure and higher frequencies in female plainfin midshipman (Porichthys notatus).

The plainfin midshipman fish (Porichthys notatus) is an established model for investigating acoustic communication because the reproductive success of this species is dependent on the production and reception of social acoustic signals. Previous work showed that female midshipman have swim bladders with rostral horn-like extensions that project close to the saccule and lagena, while nesting (type I) males lack such rostral swim bladder extensions. The relative close proximity of the swim bladder to the lagena should increase auditory sensitivity to sound pressure and higher frequencies. Here, we test the hypothesis that the swim bladder of female midshipman enhances lagenar sensitivity to sound pressure and higher frequencies. Evoked potentials were recorded from auditory hair cell receptors in the lagena in reproductive females with intact (control condition) and removed (treated condition) swim bladders while pure tone stimuli (85-1005 Hz) were presented by an underwater speaker. Females with intact swim bladders had auditory thresholds 3-6 dB lower than females without swim bladders over a range of frequencies from 85 to 405 Hz. At frequencies from 545 to 1005 Hz, only females with intact swim bladders had measurable auditory thresholds (150-153 dB re. 1 µPa). The higher percentage of evoked lagenar potentials recorded in control females at frequencies >505 Hz indicates that the swim bladder extends the bandwidth of detectable frequencies. These findings reveal that the swim bladders in female midshipman can enhance lagenar sensitivity to sound pressure and higher frequencies, which may be important for the detection of behaviorally relevant social signals.