Summary
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1.
A direct comparison of the relative sensitivity of the lateral-line system in swimming and in stationary fish was made by recording the total response of the anterior lateral-line nerve in decerebrate dogfish while the infraorbital lateral-line canals were stimulated.
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2.
During vigorous body movements, of the type made in “escape reactions”, the early components of the lateral-line response were attenuated by as much as 30 dB and the later components were completely abolished (Fig. 2).
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3.
This strong attenuation depended on two interacting factors: (i) the violent body movements created water currents which interacted destructively with the lateral-line stimulus; (ii) there was, in addition, an active reduction in sense-organ sensitivity which was attributed to the inhibitory action of the efferent lateral-line system.
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I. J. R. was supported by a grant from the Science Research Council.
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Russell, I.J., Roberts, B.L. Active reduction of lateral-line sensitivity in swimming dogfish. J. Comp. Physiol. 94, 7–15 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00610153
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00610153