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Examples of swim bladder in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In this case, the quick release of pressure causes the gasses within a fishes body to expand, often causing the stomach to be pushed out through the mouth - a different mechanism to that observed in sharks (which don’t have a swim bladder).
—Melissa Cristina Márquez, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2024
Like rattlesnakes, piranhas execute two rhythmic movements with radically different frequencies: swimming, with a frequency of up to six cycles per second, and vibrating their swim bladders at frequencies of up to 140 cycles per second to make noises that sound like barks, yips and drumbeats.
—Quanta Magazine, 11 Mar. 2024
The higher frequency pulses are generated by compressing the swim bladder from the left and right in an alternating pattern.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 28 Feb. 2024
The tension built up in this contraction is rapidly released, rather like snapping a rubber band, causing the rib to strike the swim bladder and generate the distinctive drumming sound.
—Grrlscientist, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024
Other fish also make loud noises using their swim bladders, including mating black drum fish, which made headlines for possibly keeping Florida residents up at night.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Feb. 2024
Officers working at the Nogales Port of Entry in Santa Cruz County discovered 270 swim bladders hidden inside a commercial shipment of frozen fish fillets, CBP announced.
—Ashley R. Williams, CNN, 18 June 2023
The animals can produce low frequency drumming sounds by flexing their muscles against their swim bladder.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 31 Jan. 2024
On April 13, Customs and Border Protection officers at the Mariposa trade facility found 270 swim bladders of the endangered Totoaba fish concealed within a commercial shipment of frozen fish fillets, according to Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
—Jose R. Gonzalez, The Arizona Republic, 13 June 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'swim bladder.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1837, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near swim bladder
Cite this Entry
“Swim bladder.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/swim%20bladder. Accessed 8 Jun. 2024.
Kids Definition
swim bladder
noun
: a gas-filled expandable sac in fish that serves especially to regulate buoyancy which allows fish to remain at different depths without sinking
More from Merriam-Webster on swim bladder
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about swim bladder
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