Full Description

"Male weakfish Cynoscion regalis possess highly specialized, bilateral, striated sonic muscles used in sound production associated with courtship."

"Muscle glycogen and lipid content decreased precipitously in early June during the period of maximal sound production."

"Neither the pulse repetition rate nor the number of pulses varied seasonally or with muscle mass, suggesting that the effects of steroids on the acoustic variables are more pronounced peripherally than in the central nervous system."

"Male weakfish sound production is seasonal and correlated with late spring and early summer spawning activity in the field (Connaughton and Taylor, 1995b) and with courtship behavior observed prior to spawning in captivity (Connaughton and Taylor, 1996)."

"Both SPL and SMSI decreased significantly over the course of the season (P=0.0007 for SPL and P<0.0001 for SMSI; Fig. 5A,B); SPL decreased from 65.7±1.8 to 59.8±1.6 dB and SMSI from 2.97±0.29 to 1.07±0.15 % bodymass. There was a significant positive correlation between SPL and SMSI (P=0.0027, r2=0.45; Fig. 5C). Pulse duration exhibited a small increase, from 3.42±0.14ms during the spawning period to 3.63±0.09 ms in August (P=0.02; Fig. 6A), and was inversely correlated with SMSI (P=0.05, r2=0.17, Fig. 6B). The dominant frequency ranged from 473 to 573 Hz, with a median value of 528 Hz, and did not vary with SMSI. The pulse repetition rate ranged from 20.1 to 30.0 pulses s_1 (25.79±2.52 pulses s_1, N=18), and the number of pulses in a train ranged from 2 to 5.5 (median ± twenty-fifth and seventyfifth percentiles: 3±3 and 4, N=18). Neither of these parameters varied with SMSI."

Observation Environment Quotes

"Live specimens of nearly identical size (26–29 cm total length) were acquired for bioacoustic analyses by haul-seine along the southwest coast of the Delaware Bay in May and June 1993. Specimens were maintained at 18 °C and ambient photoperiod throughout the summer and early autumn in 1500 l tanks and were fed ad libitum three times a week."

Behaviour Description Quotes

"Male weakfish Cynoscion regalis possess highly specialized, bilateral, striated sonic muscles used in sound production associated with courtship."

"Male weakfish sound production is seasonal and correlated with late spring and early summer spawning activity in the field (Connaughton and Taylor, 1995b) and with courtship behavior observed prior to spawning in captivity (Connaughton and Taylor, 1996). "

" The process of removing the fish from the water was enough to elicit sonic behavior."