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Morris M, Krysl P, Hildebrand J, Cranford T. Resonance of the tympanoperiotic complex of fin whales with implications for their low frequency hearing. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0288119. [PMID: 37819911 PMCID: PMC10566675 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0288119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2023] [Accepted: 06/20/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023] Open
Abstract
The tympanoperiotic complex (TPC) bones of the fin whale skull were studied using experimental measurements and simulation modeling to provide insight into the low frequency hearing of these animals. The study focused on measuring the sounds emitted by the left and right TPC bones when the bones were tapped at designated locations. Radiated sound was recorded by eight microphones arranged around the tympanic bulla. A finite element model was also created to simulate the natural mode vibrations of the TPC and ossicular chain, using a 3D mesh generated from a CT scan. The simulations produced mode shapes and frequencies for various Young's modulus and density values. The recorded sound amplitudes were compared with the normal component of the simulated displacement and it was found that the modes identified in the experiment most closely resembled those found with Young's modulus for stiff and flexible bone set to 25 and 5 GPa, respectively. The first twelve modes of vibration of the TPC had resonance frequencies between 100Hz and 6kHz. Many vibrational modes focused energy at the sigmoidal process, and therefore the ossicular chain. The resonance frequencies of the left and right TPC were offset, suggesting a mechanism for the animals to have improved hearing at a range of frequencies as well as a mechanism for directionality in their perception of sounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margaret Morris
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, California, United States of Ameirca
| | - Petr Krysl
- Department of Structural Engineering, University of California, San Diego, California, United States of Ameirca
| | - John Hildebrand
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, California, United States of Ameirca
| | - Ted Cranford
- Department of Biology, San Diego State University, San Diego, California, United States of Ameirca
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Wei C, McCauley RD. Numerical modeling of the impacts of acoustic stimulus on fish otoliths from two directions. THE JOURNAL OF THE ACOUSTICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2022; 152:3226. [PMID: 36586842 DOI: 10.1121/10.0016359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2022] [Accepted: 11/10/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Previous experiments have shown (1) evidence that exposure to high-intensity sounds (e.g., air-gun signals) may cause damage to the sensory hair cells of the fish ears and impair fish hearing and (2) evidence that in some circumstances such exposures cause minimal structural damage. The contradictory results regarding the damage accrued suggested that the angle of sound energy arrivals at the fish ears may play a part in the propensity of the sound to cause damage to sensory hair cells. To further study this and gain insight into specific details of the differential motion of the otolith relative to the sensory macula when incident sounds arrive from different directions, three-dimensional finite element models were constructed based on the micro-computed tomography imaging of the sagittal otoliths of the bight redfish (Centroberyx gerrardi). We used the models to study the response of fish sagittal otoliths to sounds arriving from horizontal and vertical directions. Sound pressure levels, relative displacement, acceleration, and shear stress of the otoliths and/or otolith-water boundary were calculated and compared. The results suggest that the angle of sound energy arrivals at the otoliths and the geometry of the otolith lead to different magnitudes of the differential motion between the macula and otoliths, with sound arriving in the vertical potentially creating more damage than the same sound arriving from the horizontal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chong Wei
- Centre for Marine Science and Technology, Curtin University, GPO Box U1987, Perth, Western Australia 6845, Australia
| | - Robert D McCauley
- Centre for Marine Science and Technology, Curtin University, GPO Box U1987, Perth, Western Australia 6845, Australia
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Tsur I, Shaviv N, Bronstein I, Elmakis D, Knafo O, Werner YL. Topography of vibration frequency responses on the bony tympano-periotic complex of the pilot whale Globicephala macrorhynchus. Hear Res 2019; 384:107810. [PMID: 31726328 DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2019.107810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2018] [Revised: 09/24/2019] [Accepted: 10/01/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
In modern Cetacea, the ear bone complex comprises the tympanic and periotic bones forming the tympano-periotic complex (TPC), differing from temporal bone complexes of other mammals in form, construction, position, and possibly function. To elucidate its functioning in sound transmission, we studied the vibration response of 32 pairs of formaldehyde-glutaraldehyde-fixed TPCs of Globicephala macrorhynchus, the short-finned pilot whale (legally obtained in Taiji, Japan). A piezoelectric-crystal-based vibrator was surgically attached to a location on the cochlea near the exit of the acoustic nerve. The crystal delivered vibrational pulses through continuous sweeps from 5 to 50 kHz. The vibration response was measured as a function of frequency by Laser Doppler Vibrometry at five points on the TPC. The aim of the experiment was to clarify how the vibration amplitudes produced by different frequencies are distributed on the TPC. At the lowest frequencies (<12 kHz), no clear differential pattern emerged. At higher frequencies the anterolateral lip of the TP responded most sensitively with the highest displacement amplitudes, and response amplitudes decreased in orderly fashion towards the posterior part of the TPC. We propose that this works as a lever: high-frequency sounds are most sensitively received and cause the largest vibration amplitudes at the anterior part of the TP, driving movements with lower amplitude but greater force near the posteriorly located contact to the ossicular chain, which transmits the movements into the inner ear. Although force (pressure) amplification is not needed for impedance matching in water, it may be useful for driving the stiffly connected ossicles at the high frequencies used in echolocation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Itamar Tsur
- Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
| | - Nir Shaviv
- Racah Institute of Physics The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 91904 Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Israel Bronstein
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ben Gurion University, Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - David Elmakis
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ben Gurion University, Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Oshri Knafo
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ben Gurion University, Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Yehudah L Werner
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 91904 Jerusalem, Israel; Museum für Tierkunde, Senckenberg Dresden, Königsbrücker Landstrasse 159, D-01109 Dresden, Germany
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Schmidt FN, Delsmann MM, Mletzko K, Yorgan TA, Hahn M, Siebert U, Busse B, Oheim R, Amling M, Rolvien T. Ultra-high matrix mineralization of sperm whale auditory ossicles facilitates high sound pressure and high-frequency underwater hearing. Proc Biol Sci 2019; 285:20181820. [PMID: 30963901 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.1820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
The auditory ossicles-malleus, incus and stapes-are the smallest bones in mammalian bodies and enable stable sound transmission to the inner ear. Sperm whales are one of the deepest diving aquatic mammals that produce and perceive sounds with extreme loudness greater than 180 dB and frequencies higher than 30 kHz. Therefore, it is of major interest to decipher the microstructural basis for these unparalleled hearing abilities. Using a suite of high-resolution imaging techniques, we reveal that auditory ossicles of sperm whales are highly functional, featuring an ultra-high matrix mineralization that is higher than their teeth. On a micro-morphological and cellular level, this was associated with osteonal structures and osteocyte lacunar occlusions through calcified nanospherites (i.e. micropetrosis), while the bones were characterized by a higher hardness compared to a vertebral bone of the same animals as well as to human auditory ossicles. We propose that the ultra-high mineralization facilitates the unique hearing ability of sperm whales. High matrix mineralization represents an evolutionary conserved or convergent adaptation to middle ear sound transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix N Schmidt
- 1 Department of Osteology and Biomechanics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Lottestrasse 59, 22529 Hamburg , Germany
| | - Maximilian M Delsmann
- 1 Department of Osteology and Biomechanics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Lottestrasse 59, 22529 Hamburg , Germany
| | - Kathrin Mletzko
- 1 Department of Osteology and Biomechanics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Lottestrasse 59, 22529 Hamburg , Germany
| | - Timur A Yorgan
- 1 Department of Osteology and Biomechanics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Lottestrasse 59, 22529 Hamburg , Germany
| | - Michael Hahn
- 1 Department of Osteology and Biomechanics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Lottestrasse 59, 22529 Hamburg , Germany
| | - Ursula Siebert
- 2 Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover , Foundation, Werftstrasse 6, 25761 Buesum , Germany
| | - Björn Busse
- 1 Department of Osteology and Biomechanics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Lottestrasse 59, 22529 Hamburg , Germany
| | - Ralf Oheim
- 1 Department of Osteology and Biomechanics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Lottestrasse 59, 22529 Hamburg , Germany
| | - Michael Amling
- 1 Department of Osteology and Biomechanics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Lottestrasse 59, 22529 Hamburg , Germany
| | - Tim Rolvien
- 1 Department of Osteology and Biomechanics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Lottestrasse 59, 22529 Hamburg , Germany.,3 Department of Orthopedics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf , Martinistrasse 52, 20246 Hamburg , Germany
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Schulz-Mirbach T, Ladich F, Plath M, Heß M. Enigmatic ear stones: what we know about the functional role and evolution of fish otoliths. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2018; 94:457-482. [DOI: 10.1111/brv.12463] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2017] [Revised: 08/16/2018] [Accepted: 08/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tanja Schulz-Mirbach
- Department Biology II, Zoology; Ludwig-Maximilians-University; Großhaderner Strasse 2, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried Germany
| | - Friedrich Ladich
- Department of Behavioural Biology; University of Vienna; Althanstrasse 14, 1090 Vienna Austria
| | - Martin Plath
- College of Animal Science & Technology; Northwest A&F University; 22 Xinong Road, Yangling Shaanxi China
| | - Martin Heß
- Department Biology II, Zoology; Ludwig-Maximilians-University; Großhaderner Strasse 2, 82152 Planegg-Martinsried Germany
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Tubelli AA, Zosuls A, Ketten DR, Mountain DC. A model and experimental approach to the middle ear transfer function related to hearing in the humpback whale ( Megaptera novaeangliae). THE JOURNAL OF THE ACOUSTICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2018; 144:525. [PMID: 30180668 DOI: 10.1121/1.5048421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2018] [Accepted: 07/11/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
At present, there are no direct measures of hearing for any baleen whale (Mysticeti). The most viable alternative to in vivo approaches to simulate the audiogram is through modeling outer, middle, and inner ear functions based on the anatomy and material properties of each component. This paper describes a finite element model of the middle ear for the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) to calculate the middle ear transfer function (METF) to determine acoustic energy transmission to the cochlea. The model was developed based on high resolution computed tomography imaging and direct anatomical measurements of the middle ear components for this mysticete species. Mechanical properties for the middle ear tissues were determined from experimental measurements and published values. The METF for the humpback whale predicted a better frequency range between approximately 15 Hz and 3 kHz or between 200 Hz and 9 kHz based on two potential stimulation locations. Experimental measures of the ossicular chain, tympanic membrane, and tympanic bone velocities showed frequency response characteristics consistent with the model. The predicted best sensitivity hearing ranges match well with known vocalizations of this species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew A Tubelli
- Boston University Hearing Research Center and Department of Biomedical Engineering, 44 Cummington Mall, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA
| | - Aleksandrs Zosuls
- Boston University Hearing Research Center and Department of Biomedical Engineering, 44 Cummington Mall, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA
| | - Darlene R Ketten
- Boston University Hearing Research Center and Department of Biomedical Engineering, 44 Cummington Mall, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA
| | - David C Mountain
- Boston University Hearing Research Center and Department of Biomedical Engineering, 44 Cummington Mall, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA
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Meng J, Bi S, Zheng X, Wang X. Ear ossicle morphology of the Jurassic euharamiyidanArboroharamiyaand evolution of mammalian middle ear. J Morphol 2016; 279:441-457. [DOI: 10.1002/jmor.20565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2015] [Revised: 04/27/2016] [Accepted: 05/04/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jin Meng
- Division of Paleontology; American Museum of Natural History; New York City New York
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origin of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Beijing China
| | - Shundong Bi
- Department of Biology; Indiana University of Pennsylvania; Indiana Pennsylvania
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origin of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Beijing China
| | - Xiaoting Zheng
- Shandong Tianyu Museum of Nature; Pingyi Shandong China
- Institute of Geology and Paleontology, Linyi University; Linyi Shandong China
| | - Xiaoli Wang
- Shandong Tianyu Museum of Nature; Pingyi Shandong China
- Institute of Geology and Paleontology, Linyi University; Linyi Shandong China
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