Tumble Science Podcast for Kids · Tumble Media

What Sounds Do Fish Make?

November 14, 2025·23 min·2 clips

Pacific herring communicate through farting sounds to warn their school about predators.

This episode of Tumble explores how and why fish make sounds underwater, hosted by Lindsay and Marshall. They are joined by ecologist Dr. Audrey Lubey, a Banting Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Victoria, who studies fish communication. The episode investigates listener Josie's hypothesis that fish sounds might be "blah, blah, blah." Audrey Lubey explains that while people have known fish make sounds for thousands of years, only about 4% of the estimated 35,000 fish species have been tested for sound production. Scientists use hydrophones, or underwater microphones, to record fish in their natural environments because some fish won't vocalize in tanks. Sound travels about five times faster in water than in air, making it difficult to pinpoint which fish is making a specific noise. A famous example involves a chatter sound misattributed to two fish species before researchers discovered it came from a cusk eel buried in the sand. Fish produce sounds using various methods, including sonic muscles that vibrate against their swim bladders, clicking their teeth, or expelling air. The episode features audio clips of three distinct fish sounds: a chorus of freshwater drum, Pacific herring producing "fast repetitive tick" (FRT) sounds, and the "boop" calls of the gulf toadfish. Male freshwater drum use sonic muscles to drum their swim bladders during spawning season. Pacific herring create FRT sounds, described as "farting," by releasing air from their swim bladders to warn the school of predators. The gulf toadfish, described as "slimy, grumpy cuties," produces a dominant "boop" call nonstop during mating season, which other marine life uses for navigation or hunting. Audrey is building an online library called fishsounds.net to catalog these sounds and enable global research. An interesting insight is that fish sounds are not just biological curiosities but form a "soundscape" that dolphins, prey, and other fish use to interact. Audrey suggests that if scientists could identify a genetic marker for sonic muscles, it could open a new branch of acoustic research, as listener Josie speculated. She humorously imagines fish might be saying, "give me food, grunt grunt," and describes fish as "lovable cranks." The tone is educational, playful, and conversational, filled with puns and kid-friendly humor like "ventrilo-fish." The hosts use clear analogies, comparing underwater sound identification to solving a puzzle without the box picture. This episode is perfect for curious kids and families interested in marine biology, animal communication, or quirky science facts. Listeners who prefer purely serious, lecture-style science content might find the humor and sound effects less appealing.

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