Fishionary

A blog about fish words!

By Abigail Lynch

A blog about fish words!

lateral line

Lateral line

Posted by abby on July 31, 2015
This goldfish uses its lateral line to orient upright in the water e(Pogrebnoj Alexandroff)

This goldfish uses its lateral line to orient upright in the water (Pogrebnoj Alexandroff).

The lateral line is, literally, an observable line down both sides of a fish.  It is also a sensory organ system that helps fish detect motion in the water around them.  When water along the lateral line is displaced by movement or a vibration nearby, hair cells (similar in form and function to hair cells in a human ear) translate the displacement into an electrical impulse that is transmitted to the brain.  The lateral line helps a fish orient itself upright in the water and relative to other fish (e.g., schooling fish or predators and prey).

Posted in: L | Tagged: hair cell, lateral line, movement, sensory organ, vibration

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