A new study revealed that traffic noise could block fish sex while a fish with cancerous tumor was recently found in a river in Pennsylvania.
According to the study published in Science, human-made noises, such as those from boats and cars, may be masking the acoustic signals of male blacktail shiners, a common type of minnow, or Cyprinella venusta that could make it difficult for the fish and its mate to hear each other.
With water flowing over and under rocks, creating riffles, shoals, and small waterfalls, the streams where blacktail shiners spawn become noisy during springtime in the tributaries of the Chattahoochee River, which is the time for male blacktail shiners to have sex with their mates.
During this period, male blacktail shiners emit bursts of sounds called growls similar to a cat's purr to attract their mates. To fend off other males and to protect its mate's nest of eggs after mating, a male blacktail shiner makes popping sounds called knocks.
The researchers found out that road traffic noise could possibly drown out blacktail shiners' growls up to 12 km from the bridge.
Meanwhile, a fish with rare cancerous tumor was found in Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania.
According to the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, a smallmouth bass caught was found to have a malignant tumor, which is rarely found on fish in the United States, according to USA Today.
With the discovery of a smallmouth bass with rare cancerous tumor, concerns were raised in relation to the health of the waterway.
Since 2005, biologists have monitored adult smallmouth bass populations in Susquehanna River. The biologists have found lesions and sores on smallmouth bass although they have not found tumors on other fish.