Are Otoliths Fishery Scientists’ Rosetta Stone?

An otolith, also called an ear stone or ear bone, is a calcium carbonate structure found in the inner ear of bony fish, crucial for balance and hearing, as they help the fish sense vibrations in the water and detect gravity. 

Modern applications in the use of otoliths in fisheries science began with Giorgio Pannella, a Yale geologist who took notice of the two micron “concentric shells” within otoliths that fisheries scientists had long-noticed but long ignored. Pannella made a bold suggestion that these increments were formed daily and concluded that the information recorded in otoliths will be “invaluable to the marine biologist.” In this presentation, Dr. David Secor, professor at the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, will review how Pannella’s discovery has transformed our understanding of the life history of Chesapeake Bay fishes.

Dr. Dave Secor and his group study marine fish migration ― research questions that are responsive to fisheries stewardship, threatened species, ecosystem management, and offshore wind development. This research occurs at large regional scales and employs pioneering approaches in animal biotelemetry and hard-part chemistry. Much of their work engages commercial and recreational fishers at Ocean City and within the Chesapeake Bay. In 2015, Johns Hopkins published his book Migration Ecology of Marine
Fishes, the first on the topic in 50 years. The book synthesizes hundreds of digital era discoveries, positing new concepts borrowed from bird migration and ecosystem theory. The University System of Maryland conferred the Regents Award and the American Fisheries Society Oscar E. Sette Award for contributions to marine fish migration and conservation.