clhs sciblog

          We have all heard of talking fish.  Whether its the talking clown fish “Nemo” or a barking shark, it has never been proved that fish actually “talk” or verbally communicate with each other, until now.  Andrew Bass and his colleagues, Edwin Gilland of Howard University and Robert Baker of New York University have proven this fact.  By mapping the newly formed brain cells in  hatched  fish larvae and comparing them to those of other species of fish, Andrew Bass, (what a last name for a case like this) and his fellow colleagues, found that the neural network behind sound production in vertebrates can be traced back through evolutionary time to an era long before the first animals ventured onto dry land.  This neural circuitry is also the same thing that humans use to communicate with others.  Not to mention singing birds, and frogs that “ribbit”. Bass discovered that fish hum and grunt to communicate to other fellow fish. So I guess Nemo isn’t the only talking fish around.

          I think that this article is very interesting.  Who would have thought that animals communicate to each other in ways that humans do, besides facial expressions and movements.  I think this is a wonderfull discovery and I applaud Andrew Bass for his great biological find.