Can fish hear? - Ask Scarlett

Ranger Rick, May, 1996

Well, fish can click, squeak, whistle, peep, grunt, croak, and make lots of other noises. With all that fishy underwater racket, it would be kind of silly if fish couldn't hear!

Your question isn't silly though. After all, there are no ears on a fish's head. Ears that stick out (like yours and mine) would ruin a fish's streamlined body shape and slow the fish down.

But fish have ear parts inside their heads. A fish's body picks up sounds coming through the water and sends them to the inside ear parts.

A fish also has a special organ--called a lateral line--that runs along each side of its body. This organ helps the fish sense movements in the water, including vibrations made by sounds. And it gives clues about what direction a sound is coming from.