Biology

Sharks Lateral Line – How Does It Work?

Sharks are intelligent creatures and their intelligence is because of the highly developed senses that let them be an apex predator of the ocean. The lateral line in sharks is responsible for detecting changes in their environment. Their enhanced senses detect smell, sound, sight, touch, taste, electroreception, and detecting pressure changes. Let’s discuss how sharks detect changes in pressure with the help of their lateral line.

What is The Lateral Line?

The lateral line in sharks is no doubt one of the most complicated vertebrate sensory systems. It is significantly important in many functions, such as the detection of prey, the current speed, and the direction, and providing other important information to the fish living in high tidal areas. It is basically a sensory organ present in sharks that extends mid-laterally through the body length-wise and stretches up to the tail of the fish.

Does All Fish Have A Lateral Line?

Interestingly, the lateral line is present in all fish. It is simply a hollow sensory organ that has pores in connection with the surrounding parts of the fish skin. In addition to all gish, it is also present in a number of amphibians. The main purpose of the lateral line is to respond to hydrodynamic stimuli, including vibration and water movement.

In simple words, the lateral lines help fish detect things that are nearby. When anything like fish or any other object disrupts the water, ultimately changing the pressure, the other fish detect it with the help of their lateral line (the hydrodynamic stimuli detector). So, anything that comes in the way of a fish at short distances will be detected by them because of this specialized sensory organ.

Shark’s lateral line

What Is The Function Of The Lateral Line?

In short, the lateral line is used for detecting small vibrations. Any vibrational or pressure changes in the water cause that signal to go through the pores to the lateral line, which lets the fish know. In addition, the lateral line can also be useful in locating odor plumes. Such a combination of pressure changes (turbulence) and smell is extremely useful for sharks in identifying their prey.

As mentioned above, the hollow canals called the lateral lines are filled with fluid. The wall of the lateral line has tiny modified hair cells that are instrumental in detecting small vibrations. These specialized structures in fish are so efficient that they are able to detect frequencies that are as low as 25Hz. This information, in addition to the smell, can then be used by the shark or any other fish to hide or hunt for prey.

How Does The Lateral Line Work?

The lateral lines are so efficient mainly because of their tiny cell structures. The modified hair cells that line the lateral lines play the main role in detecting pressure around the fish. As the disrupting vibrations come in contact with the tiny hair cells, they get transmitted into the fluid that is present within the lateral line. When these disruptions are swayed into the fluid, nerves send the message to the brain. Information such as the nature and the whereabouts of the vibration is sent to the brain.

In addition to the changes in water pressure and smell plumes, the lateral line can also help sharks in finding potential mates. The nature of the vibrations can tell the fish whether the disruption is caused by a similar fish or prey. It is one of the abilities of sharks and other fish that help them in surviving the harsh ecosystem of the marine environment.

One interesting fact about the importance of the lateral line in the sense of smell of sharks is that if the lateral line of the shark is chemically impaired or covered up, their sense of smell is greatly hindered. This is the situation even when their nostrils aren’t covered at all. In these situations, sharks cannot detect these smell plumes despite the fact their main olfactory organ is functional.

The sense of smell of sharks has been known to be commendable among all animals. A little while ago, marine biologists believed that this was only due to their primary olfactory organs. However, as more is known today about the lateral line, we can conclude that it plays a huge role in the commendable olfactory sense of sharks.

Conclusion

Sharks use their lateral line to detect the pressure changes in the water, which allow them to stay away from possible predatory attacks and also find their food via these lateral lines. It is no surprise that the highly refined senses of sharks are what makes them one of the strongest creatures on this planet. It’s understandable that when an animal has such effective specialized organs for their senses, they will most definitely be the apex predators of the food chain.

About the author

Ameer Hamza

Ameer Hamza is a well-versed content writer who has been a part of the writing industry for over 4 years and part of Talha Saif Enterprises as an Author for over a year. Through his love of writing, he has developed his own writing style. He enjoys writing articles and blog posts that provide readers with detailed and accurate information. The knowledge he gained from his education helped him tackle many different subjects without any problem. As an avid reader and technology geek, Ameer is always on the lookout for the latest innovations.