Homeward sound.
Despite spending weeks at sea as larvae, potentially scattered over many kilometers, young coral reef fish find suitable settlement habitat and in some cases return to their natal reefs. We report that some dominant families of larval reef fish use the sounds made by fish and shrimp resident on reefs to help them locate and settle on reefs and that some fish groups use specific components of the reef sound to guide their behavior. These findings could offer potential for active management of reef fisheries.
Simpson
Stephen D
SD
School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3JT, UK. s.simpson@ed.ac.uk
Meekan
Mark
M
Montgomery
John
J
McCauley
Rob
R
Jeffs
Andrew
A
D000819:Animal Communication; D000818:Animals; D037421:Anthozoa; D017753:Ecosystem; D005399:Fishes / Q000196:embryology / Q000502:physiology*; D006702:Homing Behavior; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D013016:Sound