Residents of Tampa, Florida have reported hearing strange noises coming from the bay for years, and now scientists believe it might be mating fish — very loud, according to reports.
A deep vibrating sound has plagued residents since at least 2021, prompting several calls to the police, according to WTVT. But the scariest aspect is not knowing the source of the racket
Local scientist James Locascio has been tasked with solving the mystery, and has identified the sound as black drum mating underwater.
“This is a pretty unusual phenomenon,” Locascio told The Washington Post. “All these people are surprised by it because it’s not well known.”
Residents had long speculated about the origin of the sound before they asked Locascio, who agreed to investigate if they could cover the cost of the recording.
They launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for the study.
Black drum are believed to be behind the mysterious vibration sound in Tampa. Andrea Izzotti – stock.adobe.com The sound has been plaguing residents since at least 2021. Fox 13 News
“It seems kind of silly to me to go ahead with it so strongly,” Sara Healy, the organizer of the fundraiser, told WaPo. “But on another level, this is something that is important to the community.”
Locascio, fisheries program manager for the Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium in Sarasota, said he plans to put equipment underwater to confirm his hypothesis.
“It’s a low-frequency sound, so they travel better and go farther, and they go through different media more efficiently,” he told WVTV.
The sound of mating travels through the ground, perhaps explaining how residents living more than a mile from water can still hear it, he explained.
Black drum produce bass-like sounds by moving their muscles against their bladders, Locascio told the Washington Post.
Dr James Locascio hopes to record underwater acoustics to confirm the fish are responsible for the commotion. Fox 13 News
The scientist completed his dissertation on black drum in 2005 at the University of South Florida’s College of Marine Sciences. He used his underwater acoustic recordings to help solve similar sound mysteries for residents in Cape Coral and Punta Gorda — about 100 miles south of Tampa.
Around this time last year, Punta Gorda officials confirmed to residents that the strange sounds many reported were coming from black drum “during spawning season,” in the city’s canals, the Miami Herald reported.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
