DETECTION AND GENERATION OF ELECTRIC SIGNALS | Physiology of Ampullary Electrosensory Systems

Many aquatic vertebrates detect weak, low-frequency electric fields produced by other animals to avoid predators and to find prey or mates. These low-frequency fields are sensed with special electroreceptor organs called the ampullae of Lorenzini. Electroreception is an important sensory system present in all basal fish groups and evolved in early vertebrates. Although the structure of receptor organs was described some time ago, their function was discovered only 50 years ago. Today, we know some details of how the electrosense is used, but many aspects of central information processing remain to be discovered.