Here’s A Sampling of How the Ocean Sounds at Night
Ever wondered what life underwater sounds like? This Bocon toadfish is hardly ever seen by day, since it spends most its time hiding in burrows in the sand near coral reefs or seagrass beds. But after sunset, its humming calls are so loud, they can drown out everything else on tropical reefs. Male toadfish do most of the singing, after they’ve staked out their burrows and are seeking to win over a mate. More than half the fish species on coral reefs are rarely spotted, because they’re small, hidden or nocturnal (sometimes all three). To tap into the “hidden half,” biologists from the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center and the Smithsonian’s MarineGEO network put recorders on the ocean floor around corals, mangroves and seagrass beds. Some of the loudest species they picked up, like toadfish and snapping shrimp, didn’t appear once to divers! (Photo: Erica Staaterman/SERC) Read more on our blog: https://sercblog.si.edu/?p=8439